Blastness partners with DirectBooker to bring hotels onto AI platforms and drive direct bookings
The new distribution channel will make hotel rates and availability accessible through platforms such as ChatGPT and Claude, enabling properties to engage with emerging travel-planning behaviours and
Blastness clients can now list hotel inventory on ChatGPT and Claude via DirectBooker, with commission below one-third of typical OTA rates and no setup or fixed fees.
Photo by Blastness
Blastness, leading provider of technology and services for the digital growth of hospitality businesses, has announced a partnership with DirectBooker, an AI-native solution specialising in the distribution of hotel inventory through the AI-powered conversational platforms ChatGPT and Claude.
The partnership gives hotels access to a new distribution channel with no setup or fixed fees. Commission is charged only on bookings generated and is less than one-third of the average commission applied by online travel agencies (OTAs), which continue to dominate online hotel distribution.
The service is designed to help hotels respond to the growing use of AI in travel research and planning. Through DirectBooker, real-time availability, rates and offers can be displayed within AI platforms, guiding travellers from inspiration and research to the hotel’s official website, where they can complete their booking. By connecting conversational search with directly bookable offers, the solution enables hotels to guide users to their own channels from the earliest stages of the booking journey.
Already available to Blastness clients at no activation cost, the service comes at a time when the booking journey is undergoing profound change. Travellers are increasingly using AI platforms to discover destinations, compare options and plan their stays. Hotels therefore need to start establishing a structured presence in these emerging environments now, so they can engage potential guests early in the decision-making process and prepare for the increasingly important role AI assistants are expected to play in hotel distribution.
“Artificial intelligence is changing not only how people search for information, but also how they make travel decisions,” said Andrea Delfini, Founder and CEO of Blastness. “Making up-to-date rates and availability accessible through AI assistants via DirectBooker creates a tangible link between the conversation and the hotel’s direct booking channel, strengthening hotels’ ability to capture demand independently.”
"We're excited to launch this key partnership with Blastness, bringing their clients the structural advantages OTAs have enjoyed on traditional search for the past two decades," said Sanjay Vakil, Cofounder and CEO of DirectBooker. "When travellers plan a trip on AI, DirectBooker's comprehensive inventory makes sure a hotel's direct rates are visible at the top of the AI search funnel, where historically only OTAs have been able to compete, and guests are sent to the hotel's own website, not a third party.”
The partnership with DirectBooker further expands Blastness’s technology ecosystem, giving hotels a new channel through which to capture demand generated by AI platforms, with an investment model directly linked to results.