August 23, 2024

Otto

Otto, a startup building an intelligent and autonomous AI travel agent for business travelers, announced that it has raised a $6 million seed round led by Madrona Ventures, with participation from Direct Travel and angel investors from across the business travel industry, including Erik Blachford, former CEO of Expedia, IAC Travel and Couchsurfing; Barney Harford, former CEO of Orbitz and COO of Uber; and Hugh Crean, CEO of Operix and former CEO of Farecast (acquired by Microsoft). Otto's mission is to create a travel assistant that plans, books and supports you during your trip. Otto is an intelligent agent, utilizing the latest in AI models and methods, that learns from a business traveler their likes and preferences, from their favorite airline, specific flights, and preferred hotels to other travel details. Otto will also provide on-trip support as flights and plans change while in transit. Focused on the business traveler who doesn't have a contracted corporate travel partner, known as unmanaged business travelers, Otto will integrate with key service providers across the business travel industry, including Spotnana and Direct Travel. Steve Singh, the founder of business travel and expense leader SAP Concur and managing director at Madrona, worked with Madrona Venture Labs to conceive and prototype Otto. Singh led the investment for Madrona and will serve as the executive chairman. Michael Gulmann, Otto's founder and CEO, brings over a decade of travel industry product, marketing, and sales experience as the former chief product officer and SVP of marketing of Egencia and SVP/CPO of consumer products of Expedia Group. Otto is based in Seattle, and plans to bring its product to market in six to nine months.