Grasp Taps Data Visionary Maria Chevalier as CEO for AI-Driven Future

DUBLIN, Ohio – April 14, 2026 – Grasp Technologies, a pivotal player in travel data management, today announced the appointment of industry luminary Maria Chevalier as its new Chief Executive Officer. The move signals a strategic doubling-down on data expertise as the company prepares to navigate the next wave of technological transformation in the global travel sector.

Chevalier succeeds Chris Wilson, who steps down after a successful two-year tenure. Under Wilson's leadership, which began in June 2024, Grasp strengthened its product suite, notably integrating the Tres back-office platform into its graspDATA system, and expanded its client portfolio. His departure is framed as a smooth and planned transition, building upon a foundation he helped solidify.

However, the appointment of Chevalier, a former board member for the company, is a clear statement of intent. Her career is a rare tapestry woven from leadership roles across every critical facet of the travel industry, giving her a uniquely holistic perspective that few executives can claim.

A Career Forged Across the Travel Ecosystem

Maria Chevalier’s resume reads like a strategic map of the modern travel landscape. She has commanded large-scale global travel and expense programs from the corporate buyer’s seat at giants like Hewlett-Packard and Johnson & Johnson, where she was responsible for over $1.2 billion in annual spend. Her work at J&J earned her Business Travel News’ coveted ‘Travel Manager of the Year’ award in 2010 for her visionary consolidation of the company's global program.

Beyond the corporate world, she has held senior executive roles on the supplier and intermediary side, managing business units with revenues up to $2 billion at Hilton and BCD Travel. This dual experience provides her with an intimate understanding of the complex commercial relationships and operational pain points that exist between corporations, agencies, and suppliers. Most recently, she served as the travel manager for private equity firm Pretium, tackling the challenge of consolidating travel data across a diverse portfolio of businesses—a task that mirrors Grasp's core mission on a broader scale.

Her prior service on Grasp Technologies’ Board of Directors is particularly significant. It ensures she is not starting from a standstill but arrives with a deep, pre-existing familiarity with the company's technology, culture, and strategic challenges. This internal knowledge, combined with her vast external experience, positions her to make an immediate and decisive impact.

A New Era of Data-Driven Leadership

At the heart of Chevalier’s professional reputation is her profound expertise in data. She is widely regarded as one of the industry's foremost experts in travel reporting, data strategy, and systems integration. Long before “big data” became a ubiquitous buzzword, Chevalier was pioneering sophisticated data-centric approaches to travel management.

During her tenure at Johnson & Johnson, she championed a global data management strategy she likened to building a house: the data itself was the foundation, with business intelligence and actionable insights being the structure built upon it. This philosophy emphasized that high-quality, centralized data was not an end in itself, but the essential starting point for setting realistic goals, ensuring traveler safety, and driving innovation. She famously implemented a “supplier-enabled innovation” model that leveraged data to manage ancillary fees and enhance compliance, demonstrating a practical, results-oriented application of her strategic vision.

This deep-seated passion for transforming raw data into strategic assets aligns perfectly with Grasp Technologies' core value proposition. The company has carved out a niche in a competitive market by building a powerful integration engine designed to identify, collect, sanitize, and normalize complex travel data from myriad sources. Chevalier’s appointment suggests a future where Grasp will not only refine this engine but also move more aggressively into the sophisticated analytics and predictive insights that corporate clients increasingly demand.

Navigating a Competitive and Evolving Landscape

Chevalier takes the helm at a critical juncture for the travel technology industry. The landscape is crowded with formidable players, from integrated Travel & Expense giants like SAP Concur and Navan to a host of specialized management solutions. Simultaneously, the sector is on the cusp of a seismic shift driven by artificial intelligence.

Industry trends point toward a future dominated by AI, moving beyond simple chatbots to “agentic AI” that can autonomously manage complex tasks like rebooking flights and personalizing travel options in real-time. Gartner predicts that such technologies could automate up to 45% of travel management tasks by 2027, while McKinsey forecasts that AI will transform 60% of business travel bookings by 2026. This AI-powered future is entirely dependent on the very thing Grasp specializes in: high-quality, well-structured, and accessible data.

However, harnessing this data is fraught with challenges, including fragmented data environments and a tightening web of privacy regulations like GDPR and CCPA. Chevalier’s expertise in data flow and systems integration will be crucial as Grasp helps its clients navigate these complexities. Her leadership will likely guide the company’s strategy in leveraging AI for predictive analytics, enhancing the hyper-personalization that travelers now expect, and ensuring robust data governance.

Grasp has already been making strategic moves in this direction, such as its expanded collaboration with Mastercard to streamline virtual payments and reconciliation. With Chevalier’s data-first vision and comprehensive industry knowledge, the company is exceptionally well-positioned to not just compete, but to define the next generation of travel intelligence. Her appointment is less a simple change in leadership and more a calculated move to install a visionary architect capable of building the data infrastructure for the future of travel.