Online Travel Agencies’ Shares Drop Following OpenAI Acquisition of Travel Startup Odessia

OpenAI recently acquired the AI travel agent Odessia, according to the startup's founder, Francis Davidson. In a recent announcement, Davidson revealed that he will now be working for OpenAI to contribute to the AI company's future travel plans. The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but it appears to be an acqui-hire. Davidson's announcement emphasized his expertise in building AI agents for travel, as Odessia had been in operation for only five months and had already assisted in planning millions of dollars' worth of travel for early adopters.

However, the travel agent has been shut down. Despite this, the tool raised a $6 million pre-seed round led by Sequoia earlier this year. Following Odessia's acquisition, OpenAI has not disclosed any new travel-specific products or plans. Nevertheless, travel remains one of the key areas where personal AI assistants are being utilized.

OpenAI launched its ChatGPT agent in July 2025, highlighting travel as one of its potential uses. Acquiring Odessia is particularly intriguing because Davidson was the founder of Sonder, a travel startup he created in 2014, which was similar to Airbnb but focused on leasing upscale apartments in major cities globally. The company faced significant struggles during the pandemic and later went public through a SPAC, but it ultimately suffered bankruptcy and wound down.

The bankruptcy trustee sold Sonder's name, trademarks, and website domain to TravelAI in 2026. Prior to its demise, Davidson had transformed Sonder into a unicorn, achieving $143 million in revenue. While Sonder did not ultimately succeed, Davidson's experience as a founder with a track record of resilience is valued in Silicon Valley.

It remains to be seen what OpenAI has planned with his addition to the company. OpenAI has not yet responded to requests for comment.