Travel startup Duffel picks up $30m to revitalise outdated airline technology
Duffel, a London-based startup seeking to provide airlines with a fresh software update, has today closed a $30m (£27.1m) funding round led by Dropbox and Slack investor Index Ventures.
Existing investors Benchmark Capital, which has backed the likes of Snap and Uber, and Blossom Capital also participated.
Duffel helps travel agencies to connect to airline booking systems so they can access information such as seat availability and flight offers in real time.
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Airlines such as British Airways, Lufthansa, American Airlines, Vueling and Iberia are scheduled to join the platform at launch.
The startup came out of stealth mode in June, and has now raised approximately $56m to date. It said it will use the funding to hire more highly skilled engineering talent and expand in North America and Europe.
Index partner Jan Hammer said: “There is an opportunity here to transform the booking experience for travellers and ease many of the pain points in the industry.
“From the launch of budget airlines to sharing economy businesses like Airbnb, travel has changed and Duffel will provide the tools, built from the ground up, that make the next wave of innovation possible.”
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Duffel has also been working with industry body the International Air Trade Association (Iata) to create a new standard for the sector on technology use, helping airlines connect to new types of sellers.
“A new breed of online agencies want to access reservation systems quickly and seamlessly,” said Steve Domin, co-founder and chief executive of Duffel.
“By reinventing the underwiring between online agents and airlines, we can transform the world of travel booking and reduce barriers to entry for innovative new companies that are offering travellers a whole new way of creating a holiday or trip.”
Image credit: Duffel