Mr. Coletta has served in a variety of high-level roles spanning 25 years in the travel industry at startups, corporations and digital agencies. At Phocuswright, he oversees the company's technology and innovation research efforts, including the screening of startups for our recurring pitch competitions, as well as varied travel market research initiatives.
He is the author or co-author of Phocuswright's annual reports on travel innovation and technology trends, consumer and B2B AI trends, the state of travel startups, the short-term rental and cruise markets, and numerous one-off research projects. He also maintains The State of Travel Startups Interactive Database.
He previously worked primarily in the startup world as an entrepreneur, investor, program manager and group organizer. He spent significant time in web development, web analytics, online marketing and tech project management, building a spectrum of expertise and network of contacts.
In the past he volunteered as the co-organizer of the New York-based Travel 2.0 Meetup group and as a global coordinator with Impact Travel Alliance. He was a member of Phocuswright's "Young Leaders Under 35" executive development program in 2013.
Click here to download Mike's high resolution photo from the Phocuswright media gallery.
Travel Innovation and Technology Trends 2026
Category: Technology Innovation Published: February 2026 Analysts: Michael Coletta US $595Phocuswright’s Travel Innovation and Technology Trends 2026 aims to provide an in-depth overview of the real-time developments surrounding the travel industry, including key focal points on the impact...
Budgets, Barriers and the Race to Agentic AI
Category: Consumer Trends Published: January 2026 Analysts: Michael Coletta US $395Based on a global survey of senior travel executives, this research examines where gen AI and agentic AI are already delivering value, how budgets are (and are not yet) shifting to support them, and...
Search Slips, AI Surges: Travel’s New Front Door?
Category: Consumer Trends Published: November 2025 Analysts: Alicia Schmid, Michael Coletta US $595Phocuswright’s Search Slips, AI Surges: Travel’s New Front Door? is part of a comprehensive consumer research study examining how U.S. travelers integrate generative AI into trip planning and booking,...
Will Agentic AI Disrupt Travel Distribution?
Category: Technology Innovation Published: November 2025 Analysts: Norm Rose, Michael ColettaPhocuswright’s Norm Rose leaves the industry with a final vision: agentic AI will redefine the travel marketplace as profoundly as the internet once did. This analysis explores how autonomous AI agents,...
The AI-Native Edge: Travel Startups 2025
Category: Technology Innovation Published: October 2025 Analysts: Michael Coletta, Stan Pawlow US $495Phocuswright has tracked the digital travel startup landscape for over 15 years, and as of the time of publishing this report there are nearly 8,000 companies in our Travel Startups Interactive...
