Plug and Play Partners With Canada’s WestJet

<p><strong><span class&equals;"legendSpanClass"><span class&equals;"xn-location">SUNNYVALE&comma; CA<&sol;span> and <span class&equals;"xn-location">CALGARY&comma; AB<&sol;span><&sol;span><&sol;strong> &&num;8212&semi; Plug and Play has announced a partnership with WestJet&comma; <span class&equals;"xn-location">Canada&&num;8217&semi;s<&sol;span> second largest airline in both their Silicon Valley and <span class&equals;"xn-location">Alberta&comma; Canada<&sol;span> locations&period; The partnership will focus on leveraging artificial intelligence and machine learning across the airline&&num;8217&semi;s business through Plug and Play&&num;8217&semi;s Travel and Hospitality program&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>&&num;8220&semi;In our expansive travel and hospitality industry&comma; access to start-ups is integral for success and working with Plug and Play will enable us to leverage many innovative solutions in market at faster speeds&comma;&&num;8221&semi; said <span class&equals;"xn-person">Christian Novosel<&sol;span>&comma; WestJet Chief Digital Officer&period; &&num;8220&semi;As we focus on the radical digitization of our airline&comma; this new partnership will accelerate driving efficiencies and cost savings&comma; though artificial intelligence and machine learning driven automation efforts&comma; as well as improving guest experience across all touchpoints&comma; as we expand our business and global network&period;&&num;8221&semi;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Plug and Play runs accelerator programs in over 20 industries worldwide&period; WestJet will join alongside over 30 partners in the Travel and Hospitality program and in <span class&equals;"xn-location">Alberta&&num;8217&semi;s<&sol;span> Sector Agnostic AI&sol;ML program that launched in early 2022&period; Throughout the programs&comma; WestJet will work one-on-one with entrepreneurs and provide mentorship&comma; business development&comma; and potential funding to the startups&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>&&num;8220&semi;Plug and Play is excited to partner with WestJet in both our Silicon Valley and <span class&equals;"xn-location">Alberta&comma; Canada<&sol;span> programs&period; By leveraging our global reach&comma; we aim to engage the best startups from around the world&comma; and in our own Albertan backyard&comma; to provide innovative solutions that can be leveraged by Westjet&period;&&num;8221&semi; said <span class&equals;"xn-person">Kevin Dahl<&sol;span>&comma; Director of Plug and Play Alberta&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Plug and Play has operated in Silicon Valley since 2006&period; Six years ago&comma; Plug and Play launched its Travel and Hospitality program&period; It has since accelerated over 280 startups and expanded to five new locations&comma; including <span class&equals;"xn-location">Singapore<&sol;span>&comma; <span class&equals;"xn-location">Shanghai<&sol;span>&comma; <span class&equals;"xn-location">Abu Dhabi<&sol;span>&comma; <span class&equals;"xn-location">Vienna<&sol;span>&comma; and <span class&equals;"xn-location">Geneva<&sol;span>&period; By joining this program&comma; WestJet will begin collaborating with the hottest startups in travel and networking with the largest names in the industry&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Plug and Play launched its <span class&equals;"xn-location">Alberta<&sol;span> location in <span class&equals;"xn-chron">January 2022<&sol;span> with three initial program focus areas&colon; Sustainability&comma; Health&comma; and Sector Agnostic with an emphasis in AI and Machine Learning&period; Plug and Play is committed to building a world-class innovation platform in <span class&equals;"xn-location">Alberta<&sol;span> to attract top technology companies and talent&comma; support investment in the <span class&equals;"xn-location">Alberta<&sol;span> region&comma; and support Albertan entrepreneurs to scale and grow to propel digital transformation across the province&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;