New York, March 5, 2026, 17:40 (EST)
- Booking Holdings shares jumped roughly 8% following a report that OpenAI is pulling back on direct booking capabilities within ChatGPT.
- Expedia and Tripadvisor shares moved higher as investors shook off worries that AI could sidestep online travel agencies.
- U.S. lawmakers demanded Booking.com and rival travel companies disclose information on their use of AI-powered “surveillance pricing.”
Shares of Booking Holdings Inc surged roughly 8% Thursday, sparked by a report that OpenAI is pulling back on plans for direct travel bookings through ChatGPT—a move that soothed fears among investors about AI chatbots cutting out online travel agencies. Expedia jumped over 12%, while Tripadvisor tacked on about 5%. The Information noted users are turning to ChatGPT for travel research but still aren’t closing transactions there, and Bernstein’s Richard Clarke called this a sign the threat of disintermediation is fading. 1
This shift is catching attention as generative AI — the latest batch of conversational tools that draft, sum up, or suggest — is being eyed as a potential gatekeeper for travel queries and bookings. Whoever winds up holding that final step could put real pressure on anyone positioned between the guest and the room.
In industry jargon, “disintermediation” means getting pushed out of the middle. For Booking and similar firms, that’s exactly where they collect the traffic, the valuable data—and a hefty slice of the fees.
OpenAI’s move shifts attention right to the checkout point—the exact moment a customer pays, whether that happens within a chatbot or through a partner’s app. The difference might look subtle, but for travel platforms, it separates owning the sale from being a background supplier.
Lawmakers in Washington are turning up the heat on travel companies over their pricing tactics, zeroing in on the role of automation and personal data. House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer sent letters to CEOs at companies like Booking.com, demanding answers about “surveillance pricing”—that is, the use of individual data such as browsing history, location, or buying patterns to tweak prices. Comer wants documents delivered by March 19. 2
Shares of Booking climbed even as broader equities faced turbulence, with oil prices surging on renewed Middle East tensions and inflation concerns flaring up. “Look at oil today, it tells you everything you need to know about why the stock market’s down,” said Michael Antonelli, market strategist at Baird Private Wealth Management. 3
Booking’s finance chief Ewout Steenbergen told attendees at Morgan Stanley’s TMT conference this week that visits driven by large language models (LLMs)—those underpinning most chatbots—are still minor and haven’t picked up momentum. “The traffic that comes through the LLMs to us is very small,” Steenbergen said. 4
Still, the relief trade isn’t built to last. OpenAI and its competitors can pivot quickly, while nobody really knows yet if selling travel through third-party apps will pay off. If direct booking regains momentum, pricing algorithms draw fresh regulatory heat, or energy costs stay high for longer, the sector could easily find itself under pressure again.
Booking Holdings operates Booking.com, Priceline, Agoda, KAYAK and OpenTable, offering travel and restaurant bookings in over 220 countries and territories. Its closest competitor in the U.S. online travel space is Expedia, though it also goes up against metasearch engines and other travel platforms worldwide. 5
Right now, traders seem to view OpenAI’s decision as a temporary breather rather than a final answer. The larger issue: where does customer ownership ultimately land — with the chatbot, the linked app, or the travel site that handles the booking?
