Expedia TAAP: Empowering travel advisors by building with them, not around them

If AI trains on data, Expedia’s Travel Agent Affiliate Program (TAAP) learns from people.

It’s the platform that connects thousands of travel advisors to Expedia’s global inventory — but more importantly, it’s an engine built for and with them. TAAP isn’t just a booking system; it’s where experiments, ideas, and human feedback turn into better tools for the industry — a culture of testing, listening, and refining that keeps the team close to the advisors who move the industry forward.

For Robin Lawther, Vice President of TAAP & Business Development at Expedia Business, that’s what makes this moment in travel so interesting.

“AI is coming at people from every angle,” he said. “It’s hard for people right now to cut through that and figure out where and how can I make this most relevant for myself, where and how can I plug it into my business in the most effective way.”

The Human Filter in a Machine Age

Robin is pragmatic about where AI fits — and where it doesn’t. “You can’t suddenly just say, I’m gonna outsource all of my itinerary planning to AI and trust it to do a good job,” he said. “We know sometimes responses are generic, sometimes not tailored well enough — and also, this thing makes mistakes.”

In travel, those mistakes matter. “You’ve got to be very specific,” he said. “There’s a lot that can go wrong if the detail isn’t correct.”

That’s why he sees this as a journey rather than a leap. “We’re all learning where to use these tools, where to apply our own expertise, and where we still need to do more checks.”

Experimentation Is How TAAP Learns

If there’s a single thread that defines Expedia’s TAAP, it’s the belief that experimentation is a human sport.

“Everything we do, we test carefully,” Robin said. “Sometimes we’re not sure if it’s going to work — so we roll it out to a small portion of agents first. If it’s great, we expand it. If not, we’ve figured out it’s not the right thing.”

While AI trains on massive datasets, TAAP trains on feedback — the kind that comes from real people solving real problems. “We test, get feedback, and roll up the things that work best and resonate with our agents,” he added.

It’s not about pushing innovation for the sake of it; it’s about building with, not around. By keeping advisors in the loop — through experimentation, iteration, and dialogue — TAAP makes sure every product feature strengthens what advisors do best: serving their clients.

The Product Behind the People

“We want to be the tool behind the scenes,” said Robin. “We want to empower advisors, not replace them.”

That principle guides every update. “We take things that are developed for the consumer business — like Expedia.com or Hotels.com — and roll them out on our platform only if we think they’ll benefit our agents,” he explained. “At the same time, we invest heavily in specific developments for travel agents themselves, based on feedback they provide to us.”

The team’s approach to innovation is deliberate: test small, learn fast, scale wisely. “You don’t want to suddenly put 20 new features in front of somebody and hope that it’s going to work,” Robin said. “We test, we learn, and we move forward.”

This rhythm — build, test, listen, refine — is how TAAP keeps its edge. It’s not about speed alone. It’s about relevance.

Grounded in Human Work

TAAP now connects 40,000 agencies and over 160,000 advisors around the world. And despite the platform’s scale, it runs on ground-level connection.

“In every market, we have a dedicated sales team on the ground,” Robin said. “They’re responsible for helping new agents onboard, teaching them how to use the platform, and resolving any challenges they face.”

These conversations — from onboarding calls to local training sessions — fuel the constant evolution of TAAP’s tools. “We run webinars, events with tourism boards and hotel groups, and in-destination sessions,” he said. “It helps agents learn, meet others doing similar things, and gives us feedback we can build on.”

It’s a feedback loop that no algorithm can replicate.

Adapting to Every Market

Every region looks different, and Robin knows it. “Almost every single country that we operate in is different,” he said. “We see differences in how agencies are structured, how they work, and what’s important to them.”

Nowhere is that more evident than in APAC, which Robin described as “the fastest-growing region in the world for travel.” It’s also, he said, “a region with a huge amount of innovation and a lot of interesting local competition.” Across markets, the challenge is always the same — finding the balance between building things that work for everyone and responding to local differences that make each market unique.

Even practical details matter. “Payments can be very specific to individual markets,” he said. “We need to put the right payment types in front of the right agents, so they can work effectively.”

It’s a simple but powerful philosophy: global technology, local empathy.

Humans in the Loop

Robin’s team doesn’t separate innovation from humanity — they see them as partners.

“There are so many different AI things happening all over the place,” he said. “Some will work really well, some probably not so well — but we’ll test, get feedback, and roll out the things that resonate best with our agents.”

It’s a mindset that accepts imperfection as progress — because every experiment teaches something.

And the people leading that progress aren’t machines; they’re advisors — global, independent, and evolving fast. “We’ve got some very large partners embedding AI into their operations,” Robin said. “At the same time, we’ve got small independents who are nimble, dynamic, and integrating these new tools into their workflows. Then of course there’s a whole bunch in the middle — perhaps they’re testing AI, perhaps not — and honestly, it’s a real mix.”

He added that for many, it’s still an exploratory stage. “It’s a time for change — and the agencies that lean in will put themselves in an incredible position to ride the wave.”

Between Code and Connection

For Robin, what’s happening now feels like another turning point in travel — just as it did when OTAs arrived or when Covid pushed everything online. But each time, travel advisors came back — more relevant, not less.

If AI trains on data, Expedia’s TAAP trains on people. And while machines may automate, it’s still the human work — the testing, talking, and trust-building — that keeps travel moving forward with the trusted travel advisors.

The future of travel, empowered by travel advisors, is more powerful — not man versus machine, but man with the right machine.

Watch the full video of our conversation with Robin Lawther, VP of TAAP & Business Development at Expedia Business Group