News

Samsung’s New Galaxy Phones Will Be Revealed On January 17

The Galaxy S24 lineup is expected to be the highlight of the Korean tech giant’s next Unpacked event.

Published

3 years ago

January 3, 2024

Nour Nasir

Samsung

Samsung is set to unveil its next line of mobile devices — likely the Galaxy S24 series — on January 17. The company’s Unpacked event will be one of the first major smartphone reveals of 2024, and the new devices are tipped to include several AI-powered features alongside the usual camera and processor upgrades.

Samsung typically uses new camera technologies to elevate its Galaxy phones over previous models. This year, however, AI is expected to feature heavily in the S24 lineup. The smartphones will be the first new devices to include Galaxy AI, which the company has already described as a “comprehensive mobile AI experience” during a teaser announcement last November.

Various rumors and leaks suggest that we should also see a titanium chassis design, along with flatter edges for the top-of-the-line Ultra model.

Also Read: Dubai Startup Creates Iron Man-Style Smart Contact Lens

The event takes place on January 17 in San Jose, California, at 10 am Pacific Time. There will also be a live stream of the event and a promotion offering $50 of credit for customers who want to reserve a handset through Samsung’s website.

News

Trip.com Is Betting An AI Agent Will Book Your Next Vacation

Abu Dhabi, Jazeera Airways and a run of hotel deals give the company more inventory. Its Mastercard demo says the most about where booking technology is headed.

Published

5 days ago

September 16, 2026

Nour Nasir

trip.com is betting an ai agent will book your next vacation

Most of what Trip.com Group announced at Arabian Travel Market 2026 this week reads like the standard expansion playbook of an online travel agency: a new agreement with a tourism board, a run of hotel partnerships, an airline deal. However, one item was considerably more interesting: a demonstration built with Mastercard of an AI agent that doesn’t just suggest trips but also pays for them.

trip.com tripgenie ai agent

The showcase put TripGenie, the company’s AI travel assistant, to work searching, selecting and completing purchases inside a single booking flow, with Mastercard’s Agent Suite for Merchants handling the payment step and Network International processing the transactions on the merchant side. It’s limited for now to attractions and ancillary services, but the partners plan a phased commercial rollout from early 2027.

“As traveller expectations change, technology and AI will play an increasingly important role in how people plan their journeys,” says Schubert Lou, CEO of Trip.com.

Meanwhile, in more conventional news, CEO Lou and Saleh Mohamed Al Geziry (Director General for Tourism at the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi), signed an agreement building on the two organizations’ existing partnership, with joint marketing and Abu Dhabi destination content to be pushed across Trip.com Group’s platforms.

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On accommodation, the group expanded its partnerships with JA Hotels & Resorts, Ishraq Hospitality and Aleph Hospitality and deepened its work with Silkhaus, which brings vacation homes into a portfolio that has so far leaned on hotels. Jazeera Airways signed a strategic partnership intended to widen the Kuwaiti carrier’s reach and encourage earlier bookings, tied to Kuwait’s own tourism ambitions.

The company moved into a larger Dubai office earlier this year and describes its long-term aim as a two-way ecosystem: sending Middle East travelers abroad while drawing international visitors in.