SAP Concur boosts AI to revolutionise travel management

SAP Concur has announced new product developments and strategic collaborations aimed at enhancing travel and expense management through the integration of advanced technologies, particularly focusing on artificial intelligence and automation.

One of the key innovations unveiled is the incorporation of Joule, SAP's generative AI copilot, into the SAP Concur suite of solutions. The integration of Joule is set to bring more automation to the travel and expense management process, enabling tasks such as reviewing expense reports for errors, recommending efficiencies, and answering employee queries directly within the application. Joule's capabilities are expected to reduce support queries by cutting down the need for users to search the SAP Help portal. Joule is expected to be generally available in Concur Expense by the second quarter of 2025.

SAP is also embedding Joule in Concur Travel, initially to aid in the organisation of offsite meetings by providing recommendations on meeting locations, and estimates for travel and accommodation costs. This function is currently available through an early adopter programme, with full availability anticipated later this year.

Another significant development in the SAP Concur offering is the expanded partnership with American Express. This collaboration introduces a real-time authorisation data capability for Amex corporate cardholders, facilitating automated expense generation and categorisation at the point of purchase, beginning with meal transactions. The initiative includes real-time mobile notifications, giving employees immediate expense policy reminders to promote adherence and reduce manual task burdens.

A notable statistic highlights that meals are the most common type of expense reported in Concur Expense, comprising 25% of total expenses. The new capability will first address meal expenses, automatically creating entries and notifying users when additional actions, such as receipt capture, are necessary.

SAP Concur's journey towards automating the entire expense management spectrum saw a significant milestone last year with its partnership with Mastercard. The collaboration ensured that expenses incurred on Mastercard corporate cards are automatically recorded in Concur Expense, streamlining the process for users. Customer feedback has indicated appreciation for this automation, emphasising the reduction of time spent on organising expense reports and enhancing data accuracy.

Chris Juneau, SAP Senior Vice President and Head of SAP Concur Product Marketing, remarked, "At SAP Concur, we're creating a world where travel and expenses practically manage themselves. We continue to deliver on that journey with these touchless experiences enabled by industry-leading generative AI and close partnerships with top payment providers."

Furthermore, American Express Global Business Travel has integrated its extensive hotel marketplace, which features over two million properties across 180 countries, into the newly updated Concur Travel solution. This integration provides users with comprehensive access to hotel content, including competitive rates and negotiated programmes.

SAP Concur maintains its position as a market leader, holding a 49.6 per cent share in the global travel and expense management software sector, as part of the SAP Business Suite. This suite is part of an integrated portfolio that combines SAP's core cloud enterprise resource planning with line-of-business applications enhanced by actionable AI.

Charlie Sultan, President of Concur Travel at SAP Concur, stated, "We are redefining the business travel experience, raising the bar for integrated travel and expense management like never before with the power of SAP Business AI. It's exciting to see our large, global customer base benefit from continual innovations that enhance the user experience and serve the needs of travellers, travel managers, and chief financial officers."