Glenn Fogel’s life took a dramatic turn at 17 when he woke up to find himself paralyzed on the right side of his body and unable to speak.

“Before that, I was doing well in school and looking forward to a good university,” he recalls. “But then I woke up one morning, and everything changed.”

Within 18 months, Fogel made a full recovery from his stroke, allowing him to pursue his college education. The process of relearning how to speak and walk instilled a determination to succeed that has propelled him to the forefront of his industry.

Now at 62, he serves as CEO of Booking Holdings, the U.S. parent company of Booking.com. As a leader in the online travel sector, the brand is recognized by millions globally.

However, many may be surprised by Booking’s significant financial strength. With a market valuation of $130 billion, it stands as the largest travel company in the world, operating in 220 countries, employing 24,000 people, and featuring over 29 million accommodation listings.

Our meeting takes place at the company’s headquarters in Norwalk, Connecticut, located 50 miles northeast of Manhattan. The area, characterized by an array of unremarkable, gray offices, could be likened to Slough for British visitors.

Glenn Fogel, dressed in casual attire with jeans and New Balance shoes, appears fit, a reflection of his routine that includes gym workouts at 5:30 AM. His enthusiasm shines through as a voracious reader, and he’s particularly upbeat following a significant day in business: Airbnb’s shares plummeted after it issued a surprise profit warning, allowing Booking to report stronger quarterly sales growth for 12 out of the last 13 quarters.

“So I was like, ‘Yes!’,” Fogel exclaims, fist pumping. “Competition is enjoyable; it’s beneficial. You want to win.”

Booking’s origins trace back to Priceline, a pioneering U.S. website that launched the “Name Your Own Price” travel model in the late 1990s, permitting customers to propose a price for their desired destination. However, like many tech companies, Priceline faced a substantial downturn in the early 2000s, witnessing its stock price collapse from $100 to just $1.

In 2005, Priceline acquired Booking.com for $135 million, a move that became crucial for the company’s growth strategy as several additional brands were integrated under the Booking umbrella. This included the notable $2.6 billion acquisition of restaurant booking service OpenTable in 2014, leading to a rebranding of the company as Booking Holdings four years later.

Carrying a takeaway coffee, Fogel leads the way into the boardroom, past a sign stating: “Strictly No Food and Drink.” Despite earning $47 million in cash and stock last year, making him one of the highest-paid executives on the S&P 500 index, he maintains a frugal outlook. When noting his stylish reusable Yeti mug, priced at $38, he quickly clarifies that it was a complimentary item from a recent conference.

“I’d never spend that much on a mug; I’d choose a store-brand one that does the same job,” he laughs, adding that he recently spent hundreds on a Yeti beer-cooler backpack for his son’s 21st birthday.

Fogel’s primary concern lies with the European Union.

This March, Booking.com reported to Brussels, qualifying as a “gatekeeper” – a term used by the European Commission to identify companies with potentially harmful market power.

This designation places Booking alongside tech giants like Google, Amazon, Apple, TikTok’s parent company ByteDance, Meta (which owns Facebook and WhatsApp), and Microsoft.

As a gatekeeper, the company faces increased regulatory scrutiny, limitations on mergers and acquisitions, and mandates to facilitate customer transitions to rival services.

Before long, Fogel expresses frustration at what he perceives as a “lack of common sense” in Brussels. He argues that the EU’s definition of Booking’s market dominance has been narrowly focused on online travel intermediaries, disregarding the broader travel landscape, which includes direct bookings with airlines and hotels, and traditional travel agencies.

“Consumers spent around $3 trillion on travel last year, with only about 5 percent, or $150 billion, funneled through Booking’s brands.”

“Five. Per. Cent!” he states incredulously. “That’s just a blip.”

Supporters of the EU’s regulatory stance argue it is essential for consumer protection against monopolistic practices. However, Fogel contends that it is ultimately the customers who will bear the consequences of increased regulation. “The resources we allocate to compliance could be better used to enhance service, hire more staff, and innovate technology.”

As he strives to adapt to the evolving market, Fogel is committing significant investments in cutting-edge technology. He has an ambitious vision to make human call-center operators obsolete, as Booking collaborates with U.S. software giant Salesforce to develop artificial intelligence capable of managing all customer inquiries and issues.

A trial of this AI technology is currently underway across various U.S. restaurants, allowing customers to modify bookings via phone interactions with AI that convincingly mimics human speech. “The AI can resolve common issues seamlessly, without relying on a script,” Fogel asserts.

While Fogel admits that travel reservations involve more complexity than restaurant bookings, he is optimistic that AI will feature prominently in Booking’s operations by the decade’s end. “I certainly hope so,” he remarks, trailing off as his PR representative intervenes, presumably to prevent him from disclosing sensitive information. “We’re progressing toward that goal, though I can’t predict the exact timeline. It’s definitely on the horizon.”

Many travelers are eager for this technology to be implemented soon. Customer service has repeatedly been highlighted as a top concern among Booking.com users, according to a survey of readers from the Sunday Times. Additionally, there are claims that hotels are more inclined to offer upgrades to guests who book directly rather than through Booking.com.

The past decade has seen a significant shift in the travel industry towards short-term rentals akin to those offered by Airbnb. Though Booking.com may not be as recognized as a leader in this space, it is closing the gap with 7.8 million listings compared to Airbnb’s 8 million, generating approximately two-thirds of Airbnb’s revenue from these listings.

Fogel acknowledges a backlash against the “Airbnbization” of popular destinations, as residents in U.K. coastal towns have voiced concerns that short-term rentals inflate housing prices and threaten local hotels. Both Scotland and Wales have begun implementing regulations, while England is expected to follow suit.

New York has taken a firm stance against short-term rentals altogether, spurred on by widespread discontent from residents. Fogel suggests that a strategic lobbying effort by large hotel chains has contributed to Booking.com and Airbnb’s challenges in the region.

He warns that regulations can yield unintended effects, citing New Jersey, where a ban in Manhattan has merely prompted a surge in short-term rentals across the river. “You have a range of stakeholders, and their interests sometimes conflict,” he comments.

Fogel’s journey originally pointed toward a potential career in investment banking with Kidder, Peabody in the 1990s. However, the firm’s financial troubles led to significant layoffs, including his own.

“They let go almost everyone, but not all, of the bankers. It was a tough situation to navigate,” he reflects.

Subsequently, he faced personal challenges, including a breakup and the sudden loss of his father to a heart attack at just 64. These events compelled him to reevaluate his career and ultimately leave investment banking for a position with Priceline in 2000 as a corporate development director. He became CEO in 2017, a tenure marked by a doubling of the company’s stock value, even amidst the turmoil caused by the pandemic in the travel sector.

Yet, despite the professional hurdles, it is Fogel’s teenage recovery from stroke that profoundly influences his drive. “I dedicated myself fully to my studies at university. I truly worked hard,” he says thoughtfully.

As a natural competitor, he emphasizes that “working hard doesn’t guarantee success. I’ve been extremely fortunate. And that’s the key to it all.”