Amadeus has the scale and airline relationships, but those advantages don't guarantee it a direct role in AI-agent bookings.
Amadeus has spent decades connecting airlines with travel sellers. AI agents may change how customers shop, but somebody still has to find flights, complete bookings, and handle changes.
CFO Carol Borg said the Muse-Duffel partnership supports Amadeus' belief that AI platforms will use aggregators rather than build booking systems themselves. She doesn't think it displaces the GDS model: "It actually reinforces it." But Duffel, not Amadeus, has the direct relationship with Muse.
Selfbook, Nuitée, Katanox, AirGateway, and Kyte are building similar booking and payment layers for AI assistants, banks, and super-apps — some competing with the GDS, some relying on its inventory. Pricing is carrying the distribution business: bookings fell 2.8% in the first nine months of 2026 while revenue per booking rose 5%, and management expects full-year results near the lower end of guidance.
Amadeus used its Q3 2026 earnings call on November 6 to argue that AI platforms will plug into aggregators rather than build their own booking systems, a position CFO Carol Borg said the Meta Muse–Duffel partnership "reinforces."
Amadeus says AI platforms will use aggregators rather than build booking systems, but in the Meta Muse deal, Duffel holds the platform relationship and Amadeus does not.