Steve Singh puts the after-booking window at the center of two questions for travel sellers: what servicing costs, and what the traveler trusts. A cancellation, a rebooked flight, a name change on a rooming list, and a refund to a corporate card all land after the traveler has paid.
Singh is Spotnana's executive chairman and CEO. He speaks at Skift Global Forum on September 22-24, 2026, in New York City. He argues that AI is rebuilding the economics of that work.
Skift published its preview interview with Singh on September 19, 2026.
Singh's number: 50% off servicing
Singh said Spotnana sees labor-cost savings across its customers and partners. He attributes the savings to AI and to automated servicing workflows.
His estimate: servicing costs can fall by 50% or more. He said the traveler experience becomes more personalized and more proactive as the cost falls.
Skift presents the 50% figure as Singh's claim. The article sets one test for it: whether the reduction holds outside a managed-travel platform built for that work.
What Spotnana's agents handle now
Singh described the change inside the travel agent's queue. Spotnana has AI agents handling cancelled segments, unticketed flights, and refunds. He said routine tasks need fewer people.
Where the hours go
Singh's plan for the freed hours is redeployment. Human agents spend more time on services that need a personal touch.
Skift lists the headcount question as unresolved. Freed agents may move to higher-value roles. Automation may also shrink the team.
One change, reflected everywhere
Singh said travelers now expect to ask anyone for assistance at any point in the journey. Spotnana works with travel providers on direct connections that synchronize booking changes. Singh said a change made in one system shows up in the others.
The 95% curation standard
Singh expects conversational AI booking to narrow the offers a traveler sees. His stated standard: present the options a traveler would have selected at least 95% of the time. The measurement uses the full list of available options.
He said the standard raises the bar on product data. Providers have to supply accurate details on rates, fares, ancillary services, and amenities. Singh said direct integrations are the best source of that information.
Skift raises two questions about the standard. Who audits the number. What the travelers in the missing 5% lose.
Fragmented content, bookable and serviceable
Singh said the content landscape is fragmented. He said Spotnana designed its platform so any source of content can be booked and serviced, and that it holds direct connections to airlines, hotel chains, and other providers.
A negotiated rate sits inside a contract. The platform still has to book it and service it. The cutoff date and the room-type mix have to load as data the system can act on.
Natural language changes the room request
Singh gave one example of conversational booking. A traveler can ask in plain words for a room on a high floor, with an ocean view, at a hotel that offers early check-in.
A group request of the same kind carries a name, a room type, and a date range. That record has to hold when a change lands three weeks later.
Suppliers prepare their data
A companion Skift preview reports that Wyndham feeds live data into ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini. Wyndham uses AI to watch AI and refine what it supplies. CEO Geoff Ballotti runs each call through one test: does it pay off for owners.
The rate a group request returns depends on the data the platform holds.
What a group buyer can ask
Singh's claims turn into four questions for a travel management company, a hotel sales contact, or a booking platform.
Which group tasks do the AI agents cover today, and which stay with people?
When a change lands in one system, where does it propagate?
Who owns the exceptions that fall outside the 95% standard?
What product data feeds the recommendation for your dates and your room types?
The forum
Singh speaks at Skift Global Forum alongside Sierra's Bret Taylor, Booking Holdings' Glenn Fogel, and Expedia Group's Ariane Gorin. The event runs September 22-24, 2026, in New York.
Singh said the traveler grades a company on every interaction.
Group rates and blocks are negotiated up front. Servicing continues after the first cancellation. Group buyers can put the four servicing questions on the agenda before signature.