A big number is doing the rounds in corporate travel. HRS chief product officer Martin Biermann has told BTN Daily that AI, applied to hotel sourcing, could cut the cost of routine travel management tasks by 75% within two years. It's a bold claim. If even part of it holds up, it will change how hotel programmes get built, and who spends their afternoons on them.

What This Means for Business Travel

Biermann's case rests on a simple observation: sourcing is full of repetitive work. Comparing rates, checking properties against company policy and chasing updates all take time, and software can do much of it. He also says the savings reach past the buyer. In his view, AI can lower costs for suppliers across the corporate travel ecosystem, which in theory leaves more room for sharper rates.

A note of caution is fair. HRS sells in this market, so the forecast comes from a company with a stake in it. That's no reason to wave it away, but 75% is a headline figure, and your own processes will behave differently. The claim also covers routine tasks. Traveller needs, duty of care and awkward exceptions still call for a person who knows the business.

Travel Coordination Take

  1. Write down the routine tasks that eat your month, such as rate checks, preferred hotel list updates, policy checks and confirmation chasing. Note roughly how long each one takes.
  2. Put a cost on the most repetitive two or three. Hours multiplied by an hourly rate is enough. That gives you a baseline to test any big percentage against.
  3. Ask your travel management company or booking tool provider what AI features they plan for sourcing, when they expect to deliver them, and what data they will need from you.
  4. Request a small pilot with a measurable result before agreeing to any contract change. Compare time and cost before and after, using your own trips.
  5. Keep a human check on the exceptions: senior executive travel, accessibility requirements and last minute changes. Automation suits the predictable cases first.

Key Takeaway

Treat the 75% figure as a prompt to measure, not a number to repeat to your finance team. Know what your routine tasks cost today, and you will be able to tell quickly whether the promised savings turn up in your own workflows.