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Gen Z Travelers Drive Buy Now, Plan Later Travel Bookings by Over 20%: Fliggy’s 2024 Buy Now Plan Later Travel Insight

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The share of outbound travel in the ‘Buy Now, Plan Later’ (BNPL) segment in 2024 has increased by 10 percentage points compared to last year

BNPL now a mainstream method of travel consumption and is set to grow in 2025

HANGZHOU, China, Jan. 10, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Fliggy, a leading online travel services platform and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Alibaba Group (NYSE: BABA and HKEX: 9988), has released its 2024 Buy Now Plan Later (BNPL) Travel Insight. The insight shows the booking volume for BNPL travel products in 2024 has increased by over 20% compared to the previous year. This growth is largely driven by a younger demographic, with Generation Z consumers accounting for nearly a quarter of those utilizing this purchasing model. Planning travel through BNPL is now a mainstream method of travel consumption.

Great cost savings with greater flexibility

‘Buy Now, Plan Later’ travel involves consumers purchasing single or multiple travel products – such as flights, hotel stays, and attraction tickets – in advance. This model allows travelers to secure these options for future use, redeemable once they finalize their travel dates and destinations. Generally, this approach provides greater cost savings compared to conventional direct booking, with many options offering the flexibility of full refunds without restrictions before the reservation is finalized.

 “Looking ahead in 2025, the recreational tourism market is expected to experience steady growth in both scale and consumer spending,” said Acton Chou, Head of BNPL Product Operations at Fliggy. “Our primary objective for travel companies is to expand our customer base and tap into the incremental demands of our existing customers. The inherent advantages of the ‘Buy Now, Plan Later’ model – such as flexible pricing, adaptable benefits, and versatile usage – make it a strategic tool for enhancing customer willingness to spend.”

Hotel fulfillment rates jump 70%

The insight indicates that the share of outbound tourism within the BNPL travel segment in 2024 has increased by 10 percentage points compared to the previous year, with hotel booking fulfillment rates for outbound travel surging by 70% year-on-year. A noticeable trend is the expansion of popular travel destinations from a four-hour flight radius to a twelve-hour flight radius from China. The top destinations for BNPL orders in 2024 include Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Japan, South Korea, the Maldives, New Zealand, Australia, the United States, and Indonesia. Additionally, there is growing interest in emerging destinations such as Iceland, Norway, Kenya, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand, which all have experienced rapid growth.

International cruise bookings nearly triple

Travel experiences in 2024 have continued to diversify, with consumers exploring breathtaking landscapes such as Bomi in Tibet, embarking on self-driving tours across New Zealand, and taking luxury cruise ships to see albatross and penguins through polar tours. According to data from Fliggy, there has been a rapid increase in demand for international cruises, overseas car rentals, and tickets to overseas amusement parks. The volume of international cruise bookings saw a near threefold increase year-on-year.

45% of hotel package buyers are new customers

The ‘Buy Now, Plan Later’ model has gained popularity among consumers, particularly in the younger demographics. In 2024, a notable influx of first-time users embraced this model. Data from Fliggy reveals over 45% of consumers purchasing hotel packages through this model were new customers. Notably, nearly one-quarter of consumers opting for this model were born between 1995 and 1999 (often referred to as Gen Z), while the proportion of consumers born in 2000 or later has seen the fastest growth, nearing 20%.

BNPL product placements surge by nearly 70%

In China, more consumers are turning to live streaming for information on travel and events, often purchasing travel products through the BNPL model. Fliggy has led the way in integrating livestreaming into the travel industry, creating a diverse and efficient livestreaming ecosystem. By partnering with Taobao and a network of professional live streamers, Fliggy supports merchants who may lack the resources for effective live commerce.

In 2024, promotional placements for BNPL products through livestreams and Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) on Fliggy rose by nearly 70% year-on-year, with a significant uptick in conversion rates for livestreaming sales. Notably, during the 2024 Double 11 shopping festival, Fliggy’s official content-driven sales channels, including its Fliggy Super VIP livestream, performed strongly, with 19 product items each exceeding RMB10 million in sales.  

About Fliggy

Fliggy is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Alibaba Group (NYSE: BABA and HKEX: 9988 (HKD Counter) and 89988 (RMB Counter)), and is one of the leading online travel platforms in China. Fliggy places a strong emphasis on innovation in its products and services, catering to the increasingly personalized and diversified needs of consumers in both China and overseas markets.

Leveraging Fliggy’s advantage as part of the Alibaba ecosystem, merchants can benefit from the vast user base within the Group. Fliggy also collaborates with partners through a full-service management format, helping more merchants, especially small and medium-sized ones, easily and efficiently share opportunities enabled by digitalization.

Fliggy’s long-term strategy is to promote the digital transformation of the tourism industry, using an open platform and mechanisms to help the industry make better use of digital business infrastructure for their operations.

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AI-Powered Earbuds Transforming North American Smart Offices: Exclusive Insights from viaim CPO at CES 2025

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LAS VEGAS, Jan. 10, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — At CES 2025 in Las Vegas, Liu Da, Chief Product Officer (CPO) of viaim, an AI technology hardware company deeply rooted in the smart office sector, gave an exclusive interview, sharing valuable insights into viaim’s exploration of the field of AI-powered earbuds, its innovative product concepts, and how the technology addresses common workplace challenges in North America. Mr. Liu also delved into the market potential of AI-powered earbuds and viaim’s strategic blueprint for shaping the future of smart offices, especially in the North American market.

North American business professionals have widely embraced remote and hybrid work models. The rise of multilingual communication has fostered a highly digitalized consumer landscape with diverse user needs, particularly for smart office solutions. In response, viaim is dedicated to developing practical AI solutions that alleviate repetitive and tiring office tasks. By addressing the evolving demands of North American professionals with its AI-driven innovations, viaim is advancing its global mission to transform work efficiency and productivity.

Unique advantages of AI-powered smart earbuds

In the interview, Mr. Liu said earbuds, being close to the user’s senses, are seamlessly integrated into daily life and serve as an ideal platform for AI technology. Unlike traditional office hardware, AI-powered earbuds are portable and versatile, fitting various scenarios such as remote meetings, commuting, and entertainment. He highlighted that viaim’s AI-powered smart office solutions position the Company to bridge the gap between people and devices, transforming earbuds from simple audio tools into smart office partners. 

viaim’s technology and design challenges during the R&D  phase

Mr. Liu detailed the challenges the Company faced during the R&D phase, including integrating AI computing power, storage, and sensors into earbuds with limited space while maintaining portability and battery life. He also highlighted the difficulty of balancing human auditory sensitivity with machine signal processing to ensure a natural user experience. To tackle these challenges, viaim employed multi-terminal collaboration, integrating earbuds, apps, and cloud services to ensure seamless voice processing and secure data management tailored to the needs of North American professionals.

Market potential, insights, and positioning in North America

A report from Upwork, the world’s largest work marketplace, projects 36.2 million Americans will work remotely in 2025, marking an 87% increase from pre-pandemic levels. AI-powered earbuds, with capabilities including meeting recording and follow-up task management, cater to the digitalized and multilingual North American market. As remote and hybrid work rises, AI earbuds are becoming vital for workplace efficiency and language learning. viaim stands out with a competitive strategy focused on technological innovation and market segmentation, offering unique value beyond traditional earbud brands.

Future strategy and product vision

Mr. Liu believes technology’s true value lies in solving real-world problems. “When users actively engage with our AI solutions, it demonstrates their true value,” he stated. AI earbuds remain the Company’s core focus, empowering professionals to shift their attention from routine tasks to meaningful creative endeavors. Looking ahead, viaim plans to expand its product lineup to include smart glasses and office accessories, creating a comprehensive AI office ecosystem. The Company aims to rapidly iterate based on user feedback, expanding AI earbuds from niche to mass markets and advancing industry development.

Media Contact: 

Qian Wang
+86-15321782927
wangqian@vision-intelligence.tech

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Steller Unveils Group Trip Planning

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KIRKLAND, Wash., Jan. 10, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Steller, a video-based, travel planning platform that allows travelers to discover, connect and book based on experiences shared by creators, introduced its most requested feature yet: group trip collaboration. The feature transforms how travelers plan group trips by consolidating everything—discovery, communication, organized planning, and booking—into one platform. 

Steller launches group trip planning, streamlining discovery, communication, and booking into one collaborative platform.

Traditional Trip planning involves multiple surfaces and when traveling with others, multiple communication channels. It is difficult to stay organized when communication is spread across text messages, social DMs, email, etc.  

Steller’s new collaboration feature eliminates communication chaos and streamlines trip planning by offering a central group hub for organizing every piece of the process. Travelers can invite others to join their Trip itinerary, keeping communication, discovery, and booking in one place. With Steller’s library of more than 30 million pieces of user generated travel content, groups can share videos of activities, dining spots, attractions, add notes, and co-create custom itineraries. Flexible itinerary views—list, map, and video—give everyone a complete picture of the plan to share and edit with their travel companions.

“Collaborative trip planning has been a top request from our community.  When we launched Trips by Steller   last January, we knew it would resonate, but the response has far exceeded expectations. In a short time, over 50,000 users have planned and booked trips by incorporating their favorite user-generated travel videos into personalized itineraries. For our destination clients,  Trips by Steller has seamlessly connected travel influencer marketing to planning and commerce. Steller clients see more than 18% of viewers who engage with their influencer campaigns planning trips to their destination—a result that sets a high bar in the travel industry. Adding collaboration to the mix amplifies that impact, inspiring more people to explore, engage and transact together!” said Pete Bryant, CEO of Steller. 

How It Works  

Whether it’s a getaway for two or a large group adventure, collaboration makes organizing travel plans easy with an all-in-one solution. 

Build Your Itinerary Together: Group members can contribute by adding things to do, activities, and notes.Stay Organized: Add notes and structure by day, activity, or group to eliminate confusion.Flexible Views: View your itinerary as a detailed list, on a map, or through video for a fully customizable planning experience.Real-Time Updates: Keep track of changes, additions, and edits made by group members.On-the-Go Access: Everyone can access the itinerary on their phone.

Steller continues to lead the charge in innovative travel planning, ensuring that its platform evolves based on user feedback. Collaborative trip planning is the latest step in its mission to evolve travel. 

About Steller 

Steller, headquartered in Kirkland, Wash., is the market leading travel planning platform that guides travelers from inspiration to planning and booking through authentic experiences of their favorite creators. Steller’s patent pending platform distributes millions of pieces of bespoke, worldwide video content that can be found and booked on the Steller app. Learn more at www.steller.co  and  stellerforbusiness.com

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RAAPID Raises Series A from M12, Microsoft’s Venture Fund to Scale Next-Generation Healthcare Risk Adjustment

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Company reports 300% revenue growth in 2024 and advances partnerships with nation’s leading health systems

LOUISVILLE, Ky., Jan. 10, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — RAAPID, the industry-leading healthcare AI company, announced today a significant Series A investment from M12, Microsoft’s venture fund. This strategic funding positions RAAPID to expand its groundbreaking Neuro-symbolic AI platform that is reshaping healthcare risk adjustment.

RAAPID’s explosive growth – marked by a 300% revenue increase in 2024 – demonstrates the market’s strong validation of its advanced technology platform. The company has quickly established itself as a trusted partner for major health plans and provider., At the core of RAAPID’s success is its pioneering VisionAI technology, which tackles one of healthcare’s most pressing challenges: making sense of unstructured medical data. While over 70% of medical records exist as unstructured data when shared outside EHRs, RAAPID’s AI engine transforms this complex information into actionable insights, enabling unprecedented accuracy in risk capture and care gap identification.

“Our vision extends beyond traditional risk adjustment,” states Chetan Parikh, Founder and CEO of RAAPID. “We’re creating a future where AI augments healthcare professionals’ capabilities, leading to better patient outcomes and more accurate appropriate reimbursements. This investment from M12 accelerates our mission to transform healthcare through advanced AI.”

RAAPID’s purpose-built Risk Adjustment platform has achieved remarkable results:

Slashing chart review time by 60-80%Surpassing industry standards with 95%+ coding accuracyGenerating additional appropriate and compliant revenue per memberImproving risk capture accuracy by 25%

The HITRUST-certified platform stands out for its unique Neuro-symbolic AI approach, combining neural networks with an extensive medical knowledge graph containing over 4 million clinical entities and 50 million relationships. This sophisticated technology enables both retrospective analysis and prospective risk adjustment, helping organizations identify and address care gaps to positively impact patient health.

“Healthcare organizations are increasingly seeking innovative solutions to manage risk and improve care delivery in value-based arrangements,” said Todd Graham, Managing Partner at M12. “RAAPID’s AI-driven risk adjustment platform aligns perfectly with our investment strategy. Through M12, we are committed to providing our portfolio companies with access to Microsoft’s resources and expertise to drive significant impact in the healthcare sector.

Led by a team with over 25 years of healthcare technology expertise, RAAPID has collaborated with experts from the top 4 tech giants in developing its clinical AI solutions. RAAPID continues to push the safe boundaries of what’s possible in healthcare AI. The company’s selection as an M12 portfolio company validates its position as a leader in healthcare technology innovation.

As value-based care becomes increasingly important, RAAPID’s AI-powered solutions are becoming essential tools for healthcare organizations striving to improve timeliness and quality of care all patients expect. With this new funding, RAAPID is poised to further advance its technology and expand its positive impact on patients, providers and payers.

About RAAPID
RAAPID develops AI-powered solutions for healthcare payers, providers, and supporting organizations. The company’s cloud-based risk adjustment platform uses neuro-symbolic AI to identify chronic conditions, determine HCC codes, calculate risk scores, and analyze population health trends. RAAPID serves organizations that participate in Medicare Advantage, ACA, Medicare ACO, and Medicaid programs.

For more information about RAAPID’s AI-powered risk adjustment solutions, visit www.raapidinc.com

CONTACT:
Mayur Vyas
(502) 699-3044
388583@email4pr.com

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