News

Tumodo Secures $35 Million To Transform MENA Business Travel

The B2B travel platform combines data science, user-friendly design, and world-class service to bring businesses and employees the best travel experiences.

Published

2 years ago

January 18, 2024

Nour Nasir

tumodo secures $35 million to transform mena business travel

Tumodo, an innovative business travel platform founded in 2023, has announced the successful completion of a $35 million pre-seed funding round, co-led by prominent angel investors focused on the MENA region.

The substantial injection of capital will serve as a catalyst for Tumodo’s expansion in the UAE market, continued product development, and the exploration of new partnership prospects. Additionally, the company has ambitious plans to extend its reach across 25 countries worldwide by 2026.

Tumodo offers businesses a streamlined solution to book flights and accommodation for hundreds of employees in under two minutes. Notably, the platform provides complete transparency, free from hidden fees, allowing businesses to manage expenses with greater precision. The company is also working on an AI feature to simplify trip planning, offering seamless integration with corporate HR systems.

Stan Klyuy, Tumodo’s Chief Commercial Officer, explained, “[Tumodo’s] mission is to contribute to the MENA business travel market, ensuring not only its rapid recovery but also positioning it as a leader in technological innovation. We facilitate the establishment of efficient business processes, optimize travel expense management, and bolster employee productivity while ensuring compliance with travel policies. On average, our clients achieve a remarkable 35% reduction in their business travel expenses”.

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Tumodo has already gained the trust of over 100 businesses in the MENA region, boasting connectivity to major distribution channels, global hotel chains, and collaborations with over 400 airlines. In addition, Tumodo’s support specialists are available to assist in trip organization, helping to meet travel objectives while maximizing return on investment.

According to the World Travel & Tourism Council, even during the pandemic, business travel expenditures surpassed leisure travel spending. During 2021-2022, the growth rate of the business travel market exceeded that of leisure travel by 1-10% in many regions, reaching nearly 15% in the Middle East market.

News

At I/O 2026, Sundar Pichai Concedes AI Must Deliver Real Value

Gemini 3.5, a personal agent called Spark, agentic shopping, and Android XR eyewear are all aimed at making AI feel useful, not just impressive.

Published

2 weeks ago

May 20, 2026

Nour Nasir

at io 2026 sundar pichai concedes ai must deliver real value

Google

Google’s annual I/O developer conference (I/O 2026) has recently become a status update on the same question: can the company turn its AI spending into products people use every day? This year, chief executive Sundar Pichai described Google as being in a phase of hyper progress, while conceding this is the part of the cycle where people want to see real value in the products they use on a day-to-day basis.

The strategy on display was to push agents — AI systems that act on a user’s behalf — into nearly every Google product at once. Search now has an “intelligent search box” that returns generated explainer videos alongside links. Gmail, Docs, YouTube and Maps are gaining their own agent layers, including a Docs Live feature that turns spoken instructions into drafted text with citations.

Two new models, Gemini 3.5 and a cheaper Gemini 3.5 Flash, arrived the same day. Google says 900 million people now use Gemini, and that more than 50 billion images have been generated with it. The pricing tier names are likely to confuse buyers: a new AI Ultra plan launches at $100 a month, while the older Gemini AI Ultra drops from $250 to $200.

The flashier announcements were Gemini Omni, a video generator pitched as a more realistic answer to OpenAI’s discontinued Sora 2, and Gemini Spark, a personal agent that handles recurring tasks across a user’s Google account. A new universal shopping cart lets agents complete purchases across multiple retailers from inside Google itself, placing the company between the merchant and the buyer, and also owning the checkout.

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Google also confirmed its Android XR eyewear, built with Samsung and frames from Warby Parker and Gentle Monster. Audio-only glasses ship this autumn; a display-equipped version, which would superimpose live translations into the wearer’s field of view, is still in development. Both sets translate, however only the display version shows you the result.

What Pichai did not resolve is the bargain underneath all this. An agent is only useful to the degree it knows your calendar, your inbox, your shopping history and your physical surroundings. Google has now confirmed that, in time, the same context may carry advertising.