South African travel agents who fail to move beyond basic AI adoption risk falling into a “missing middle”, where they are neither large enough to automate at scale, nor niche enough to remain indispensable.
According to Mladen Lukic, GM of Travel Counsellors South Africa, and Lasse Vinther, MD of Automation Architects, staying relevant is not simply about subscribing to agentic AI tools, but about taking ownership of the capabilities they provide and using them to highlight agents’ unique value.
Engagement refines toolkit
Lukic describes a reciprocal relationship between AI tool providers and their users, where agents’ engagement with new tools is essential both to improving the technology itself and maintaining their relevance in a rapidly changing travel environment.
“It can be very difficult as an AI supplier to perform in a subscription-based environment. Agents work with multiple retail systems that require them to subscribe to use the platform, such as GDSs and booking tools,” said Lukic.
He explains that, due to the highly competitive environment and some agents’ hesitancy to adopt AI solutions, it can be difficult for providers to introduce new capabilities that are most relevant to agents. However, meaningful engagement from agents helps shape the development of more useful tools.
“As a provider of yet another subscription-based tool, we have to be adamantly in control of the environment we are offering our tools for. The owners of agentic tools constantly change their platforms to match the changing environment, but users have to engage to inform these changes and adapt to remain relevant,” said Lukic.
He added that it is essential for users to take ownership of these AI platforms before their businesses become obsolete.
The ‘missing middle’
Based on current investment and implementation patterns among South African agencies, Vinther predicts that as AI solutions become more embedded in the travel industry, two main categories of agencies will benefit most, potentially leaving behind a “missing middle”.
“The big agencies will continue to rely on large volumes of bookings, assisted by agentic AI to offer a high-touch type of service, and then there are going to be smaller agencies that offer super niche offerings, who will rely on AI for scaling up and marketing their specialised content. This will likely leave behind a big ‘missing middle’ group of agents who will be at risk of losing relevance,” explained Vinther.
Larger agencies typically have the financial resources to invest in AI solutions and have been among the earliest adopters. At the same time, smaller niche agencies – often focused on high-value clients, specific destinations, or highly tailored itineraries and services – are also investing in curated AI-driven solutions.
“For these agencies, specific agentic tools to curate their aesthetic, marketing content and further refine their product are being embraced. If anything, their clientele pay them handsomely, just so they don’t have to deal with AI themselves,” said Vinther.
“However, if I was, for example, a mid-sized agency or a more general ITC, I would be concerned about whether I am going to fall in the missing middle.”
