Dive Brief:
- Delta Air Lines views its generative AI-powered digital travel assistant as the future of travel. Still in beta, the airline will offer Delta Concierge to a small number of app users who are loyalty members this month, the airline announced last week.
- The assistant, which CEO Ed Bastian first previewed in January at CES 2025, aims to offer personalized support and make traveling easier and less stressful.
- Customers will be able to engage Delta Concierge with natural language text or voice queries. It will provide proactive guidance, including notifying customers of upcoming passport expiration or visa requirements.
Dive Insight:
Delta is heavily investing in the customer experience, with partnerships with Uber to improve drop off and pick up as well as with T-Mobile to roll out complimentary Wi-Fi to loyalty members. The digital travel assistant is just one of the carrier’s latest initiatives to make traveling easier.
“Delta Concierge fits into Delta's CX strategy by combining two things customers love most: personalization and simplicity,” a Delta spokesperson told CX Dive in an email. “It's designed as a tool for our SkyMiles Members, helping them find personalized support for their travel, right through the app.”
The airline updated its app last week to include Delta Concierge and other features like Flex Calendar, which allows customers to compare fares across dates if their flight dates are flexible.
In addition, customers who have enabled Live Activities updates can now see more details of their flight on their lock screen on their day of travel, including boarding zone, seat assignment and baggage carousel. United Airlines and American Airlines are among the airlines that provide Live Activities notifications.
Delta’s app update also improved visibility into Delta SkyMiles card memberships. Card members can now track their spending, Delta Sky Club visits, and progress toward certain perks on the app.
The carrier views Delta Concierge as the future of travel.
“Delta Concierge will serve as a thread across your experience,” Bastian said in January. “A gen AI powered personal assistant that anticipates your needs, provides real time guidance and delivers tailored recommendations, combining the context of who you are and how you travel, with the deep knowledge and insights we’ve already built as the world's most reliable airline.”
Delta isn’t the only airline rolling out virtual assistants. Qatar Airways released Sama, the “world’s first AI-powered digital human cabin crew,” in 2024. In June, American said it was testing a new generative AI-powered chat assistant to help customers navigate changes to their travel plans.
