Where Loyalty Meets Adventure

Building Via.ai’s Digital Travel Concierge

About the project

Via.ai is a travel-tech startup redefining customer engagement through AI-driven, personalized digital concierge experiences. Their platform helps financial institutions and travel retailers turn every interaction into a loyalty-building moment—offering curated travel and lifestyle services that deepen relationships and drive new revenue.

I joined as their Product Strategist and designer to shape the product vision, build an investor-facing prototype, and design the first version of the AI travel agent experience.

Employer:
Via.ai.com

Role:
Product Strategist and Designer

Tools:
Figma

Duration:
4 months

It shaped the AI to be more than a planner—an intuitive, culturally aware assistant.

User Snapshot: The Israeli Traveler

“I need a vacation… but I don’t have three hours to plan it.”

Our core users were busy Israeli parents juggling careers, family life, and unused loyalty points. Travel was a priority, but planning felt overwhelming.

Why it matters:

  • 7M+ outbound trips from Israel in 2022

  • Travel market expected to hit $40B by 2027

  • Projected Loyalty Market Growth to $966.4 Million by 2027

Designing the Experience

The heart of this project was crafting an AI interaction that felt helpful, human, and deeply personalized, while reinforcing customer brand loyalty through smart, timely recommendations.

We mapped out:

  • How the AI responds to vague or evolving requests

  • How to handle mid-journey changes

  • The relationship users will have with the AI

Plan A: A Full Mobile App Prototype

To bring this vision to life, I designed a fully interactive, end-to-end mobile app in Figma that showcased:

  • Personalized trip flows

  • Smart destination suggestions

  • Retail point redemption

  • Dynamic offers and upgrades

This app prototype became the centerpiece of investor and partner conversations, clearly demonstrating how Via.ai could unlock new revenue and deepen loyalty through seamless digital concierge services.

Our business partners loved it.

As the roadmap took shape, we hit a reality check

🚧 With limited engineering and tight deadlines, a full launch wasn’t possible… yet.

Plan B: Bring It to WhatsApp

So we adapted. Fast.

We asked: How do we preserve the magic of this concierge experience, with zero downloads, and maximum reach?

Answer: WhatsApp.

✓ Used daily by 95%+ of Israelis
✓ Already trusted for personal and business communication
✓ Perfect for delivering conversational AI experiences

Users could:
✓ Chat with the AI agent
✓ Get curated, personalized trip options
✓ Adjust preferences on the fly
✓ Book without ever leaving the conversation

Impact

The design work paid off—literally.

  • The prototype helped Via.ai secure funding (Can't publicly disclose)

  • It was a key piece in partner discussions with top Israeli travel retailers, banks, and airlines

  • Our pivot to WhatsApp enabled a faster go-to-market strategy, accelerating pilot deployments with a major airline

This project wasn’t just about nice screens. It helped unlock real traction and bring a big vision one step closer to reality.

Reflection

This project wasn’t just about designing a product, it was about translating a bold vision into an actionable experience and strategy under real-world constraints.

  • I learned to lead UX through rapid pivots

  • I helped shape product strategy and investor messaging

  • I got to have a significant impact on real-life projects

Biggest takeaway: Sometimes, the smartest design move isn’t building more. It’s building smarter, with empathy, creativity, and a relentless focus on the user.