About UNWTO
UN Tourism is the United Nations agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism.Activities by UNWTO
UN Tourism - Artificial Intelligence Challenge
Global BrazilColombiaSaudi ArabiaSpainUnited StatesWith AI and advanced technologies reshaping the travel industry, countries around the globe have been integrating these solutions to improve personalized services, streamline operations, and elevate customer engagement, delivering scalable solutions that bring measurable results. This vision drives the UN Tourism AI & Deep Tech Start-up & Scale-Up Challenge, which aims to spark innovation and entrepreneurship in tourism with practical, high-impact AI applications across the tourism value chain. The competition closed with a total of 441 applicants from 84 countries. The winner, Consensus Framework (Smart Tour) from Brasil, is a GovTech startup that uses IoT, AI and real-time data to help cities manage visitors and develop smart-tourism destinations, was announced during the 26th UN Tourism General Assembly in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) 7-11 November 2025.
Activity Type AI Tools/SolutionsPolicy/Regulatory GuidanceNetworks/Mentorship/ExchangeUN Tourism – Women in Tech Startup Competition Middle East 1st Edition
Arab States EgyptSaudi ArabiaUnited Arab EmiratesCountries across the Middle East have been integrating innovation and women empowerment within their long-term economic development plans. With women across the region becoming more interested in STEM degrees and launching startups, they need support and access to growth and funding opportunities. In this regard, the Women in Tech Startup Competition offers a platform for innovation opportunities in tourism for new entrepreneurs. All the winning startups of the competition were based off AI-solutions: Sparkle Haze (UAE): Award-winning voice AI assistant speaker for luxury hospitality. Plastus Biotech (KSA): Patented tech converts organic waste into 100% biodegradable bioplastic. Fosha (Egypt): AI-powered app for travel service bookings. Xenios Academy (UAE): AI powered EdTech startup with gamified training programs for cafes, restaurants, and hotels to bridge skill gaps. This competition closed with a total of 143 applicants from 11 countries in the Middle East.
Activity Type AI Tools/SolutionsPolicy/Regulatory GuidanceAwareness/AdvocacyNetworks/Mentorship/ExchangeUN Tourism - Awake Tourism Challenge
Africa, Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States, Latin America and the Caribbean ArmeniaBrazilFranceGermanyNamibiaNetherlandsNorwayPanamaPortugalQatarRepublic of KoreaSingaporeSpainUnited StatesFollowing a careful evaluation process, 15 winners out of 2,000 participants from 120 countries were released. The majority of applications came from Africa, Europe and the Americas, and mainly from the Tourism Tech for Good and Local Community Involvement categories. Top reade-to-implement solutions have joined the UN Tourism Innovation Network and look forward to engaging projects all over the world.
Activity Type AI Tools/SolutionsPolicy/Regulatory GuidanceNetworks/Mentorship/ExchangeUnited for Smart Sustainable Cities (U4SSC)
Global Not ApplicableU4SSC is a global UN collaboration that supports cities in advancing the SDGs by promoting people-centered, digitally inclusive, and climate-resilient urban development. It provides guidance on integrating ICTs and AI into city operations and has developed a globally recognized set of KPIs for smart sustainable cities, implemented in more than 250 cities worldwide.
Activity Type Research/Reports/AssessmentsPolicy/Regulatory GuidanceAwareness/AdvocacyNetworks/Mentorship/Exchange