HBX Group, the B2B travel technology marketplace behind Hotelbeds, Bedsonline, and Civitfun, has agreed to acquire Bridgify, an AI-native platform focused on experiences distribution. The deal was announced on 13 May 2026.
Bridgify gives HBX Group access to more than one million experiences sourced from global suppliers, alongside proprietary AI recommendation algorithms designed to match experiences to individual travellers. Its architecture is built around API connectivity and white-label solutions, allowing partners to integrate experiences inventory into their own platforms without building the underlying infrastructure.
The financial terms reflect a cautious structure. HBX Group is paying €3 million upfront, with the overwhelming majority of total consideration deferred and tied to future performance. Bridgify’s founders will remain in the business.
Nicolas Huss, CEO of HBX Group, framed the acquisition around two priorities: expanding the group’s experiences portfolio and accelerating AI-driven automation and personalisation across its broader ecosystem. Amit Shamni, CEO of Bridgify, pointed to the alignment between Bridgify’s distribution infrastructure and HBX Group’s global network as the rationale for the deal.
What it means for distribution
The acquisition is part of a wider pattern in B2B travel: the experiences segment, long the most fragmented and least digitized category in travel supply, is being brought into standardized distribution infrastructure. Where flights and hotels have spent decades building machine-readable inventory layers, experiences have remained largely offline or accessible only through bespoke integrations.
Bridgify’s API-first model is a direct attempt to change that. By embedding it within HBX Group’s marketplace, the combined entity is positioning itself as the connectivity layer for experiences at scale, the same role Hotelbeds plays for accommodation.
The acquisition also reflects a broader shift toward AI-personalised merchandising within travel distribution, where recommendation engines are increasingly becoming part of the infrastructure layer rather than just the customer interface.
For travel distributors across Africa and emerging markets that rely on HBX Group’s B2B inventory, the question now is how quickly Bridgify’s experiences supply extends into these regions, and whether local operators are connected to access it.
Travel Distribution News covers airline distribution, NDC, travel payments, and travel technology with a focus on Africa and emerging markets.
