Air New Zealand has joined the global wave of Artificial Intelligence (AI) adoption, with the aims to enhance the airline’s performance in terms of guests and employee experience. This marks a strategic step towards becoming one of the world’s most digitally advanced carrier and reshaping how it runs its operations behind the scenes.
Air New Zealand Is Optimising Operations with AI
The airline has laid the groundwork in New Zealand establishing a direct partnership with OpenAI, the US-led company behind the popular chatbot application ChatGPT. Under the agreement, more than 3,500 staff members will gain access to a customised enterprise platform called Companion AI. The carrier has already developed more than 1,500 Custom GPTs specialised tools designed to support workflow, planning, maintenance and internal communication.
Many carriers have already laid the groundwork for enhancing customer-facing services through artificial intelligence. However, Air New Zealand is placing a stronger focus on internal transformation, prioritising back-end efficiency by streamlining decision-making, reducing manual processes, and improving operational reliability across departments.
Joining a Growing Global Shift
The move places the national carrier among a growing list of global airlines that have adopted generative AI in an effort to strengthen operation resilience and drive costs down. Delta Air Lines, British Airways and Emirates have adopted similar AI tools to boost efficiency: better manage pricing, disruption, scheduling and customer service. For Air New Zealand, a medium-sized carrier operating in a high-cost and geographically isolated market, digital tools represent much-needed solutions to long-term growth and resilience.
Oliver Jay, OpenAI’s Managing Director of International echoes the sentiment that innovation is no longer optional in aviation:
“Air New Zealand’s focus on innovation and responsibility shows how the aviation sector can adopt advanced tools in practical ways that deliver value for both employees and customers.”
Digital Tools, National Signal
The airline’s push for digital transformation follows a similar trajectory to its sustainability strategy, including its record purchase of 30 million litres of sustainable aviation fuel in December last year, a move aimed at positioning Air New Zealand at the forefront of both technological and environmental innovation in the modern aviation landscape. Read more here.
Although the partnership with OpenAI is led by business objectives, it carries broader implications. As AI becomes a competitive tool, national carriers are playing a growing role in shaping their countries’ digital footprints and reputations. For New Zealand, the agreement signals a willingness to keep pace with emerging technologies not just in the air, but on the global stage.
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