Navan Inc. is launching Navan Edge, an AI-powered assistant designed to revolutionize corporate travel booking. The tool, debuting this week, functions as a hyper-personalized executive assistant, making it easier for travelers to book flights, hotels, and restaurants. CEO Ariel Cohen positions it as a free alternative to expensive executive assistants.

This marks a strategic shift for the company, as Navan Edge will be available to anyone who signs up on their website, not just corporate clients. The move aims to expand Navan's reach into the $56 billion business travel marketplace beyond its existing corporate user base. Cohen says this opens new opportunities previously inaccessible to the company.

The AI assistant was developed in-house using data from millions of bookings across over 10,000 companies. Founded in 2015, Navan already offers expense management and other corporate tools. This AI rollout underscores how companies are leveraging fast-developing artificial intelligence to reshape customer experiences in the travel industry.