Fora, a platform that lets ordinary people become travel agents and gives travellers a way to find them, has raised a $60m Series D at a $1bn valuation led by Forerunner and Tactile Ventures. It has 15,000+ advisors (97% new to the profession) who have booked over $3bn in travel, an accelerating curve. Fora is spending the money on Via, an embedded AI assistant that handles admin so advisors focus on clients, an explicit augment-not-replace bet in a category the internet and AI were supposed to kill.
Travel agents were supposed to be an early casualty of the internet, and then of AI. A company built entirely on human travel agents has instead become a unicorn, according to Fora’s announcement.
Fora has raised $60m in a Series D at a $1bn post-money valuation. The round was led by Forerunner and Tactile Ventures, taking total funding to $138.5m.
The backing goes beyond the usual venture names. Returning investors Thrive Capital, Insight Partners, and Heartcore Capital were joined by new backers, including PLUS Capital, whose artist and athlete collective features Amy Schumer.
The whole thing runs against a decade of received wisdom. The middleman was supposed to disappear, not raise at a billion dollars.The 💜 of EU techThe latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise ol' founder Boris, and some questionable AI art. It's free, every week, in your inbox. Sign up now!
