Global AI-first travel technology firm Dida has initiated the Future of Travel innovation challenge targeting university students in the United Kingdom.

This challenge, in partnership with Headstart Global, seeks to empower youth to reshape the future of global travel using creativity, innovation, and technology.

Participants will devise solutions to address groundbreaking issues in travel technology. Dida Holdings CEO Daryl Lee stated, “The future of travel belongs to those who can combine technology, creativity, and human insight. This challenge allows students to see how global travel is evolving from within—not just through AI but through the ideas and imaginations of the next generation.”

Lee emphasized that Dida has consistently embraced innovation, indicating that this initiative showcases their commitment to cultivating promising young talents who will shape the future of travel tech.

The competition aims to enhance Dida’s global innovation strategy and strengthen ties between academia and the travel technology sector. Notably, it includes distinguished teams from premier UK universities such as the London School of Economics, University College London, University of Edinburgh, University of Warwick, and the University of Manchester.

Finals are scheduled for November 1 at the Shangri-La Hotel in London, where the best nine teams will pitch their innovative concepts to a panel of judges from Dida’s global executive leadership team.

Winners will be awarded cash prizes as well as an exclusive, all-expenses-paid Insight Week at Dida’s headquarters in Shenzhen, China, immersing them in Dida’s innovation ecosystem and providing hands-on experience with cutting-edge AI applications and product development that are shaping the future of travel.