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The airport has installed the talking Gargoyle on its 24th anniversary
Artificial Intelligence is getting smarter every day, so is its uses. Airlines and airports across the world are engaging in cutting edge AI to improve customer experiences and business efficiency.
To mark its 24th anniversary, Denver International Airport in Colorado installed a new talking gargoyle that uses AI to interact with passengers. At this airport, people have always witnessed disturbing art, strange markers on the ground, and a demonic horse statue. But the new chatty gargoyle is a charmer for the passengers.
Already famous for its conspiracy theories, the Denver Airport authority installed the AI-powered gargoyle to interact with the passengers and give parodied references to the conspiracy theories. “Welcome to Illuminati Headquarters – I mean, Denver International Airport,” the gargoyle is seen greeting the passengers. “What, you’ve never seen a talking gargoyle before?” the gargoyle asks a surprised passenger.
Not only AI is helping the aviation industry in safer and secure travel through predictive modelling, machine learning and data mining but is also helping the industry in making the travel experience a rich and fun experience. International Air Transport Association (IATA) in various conventions has predicted that 80 per cent of airlines plans to invest in R&D programs for safer, secure, and smooth airline travel that rely on AI.
Airports across the world are investing in technology to enhance the user experience
Artificial intelligence
Chatbots is another technology catching industry attention; with 14 per cent of airlines and 9 per cent of airports now use these computer programs. By 2020, 68 per cent of airlines and 42 per cent of airports plan to adopt AI-driven chatbot services, according to a survey. Every other tour & travel website nowadays employs the chatbot to interact with customers 24X7. They mimic human conversation; they can help with customer queries, perform check-ins and book flights. A machine taking your reservation via voice commands has already landed.
Robotics
By 2025, India will become the third largest aviation industry market. The growing demand for cargo services and domestic air travel robotics will be another technology to make air travelling and cargo handling a seamless experience. The international airports in India could take a cue from Amsterdam airport Schiphol or Dusseldorf airport that has handed over baggage handling to car parking to robots. At Tokyo’s Haneda airport, a total of 17 robots have already been chosen to participate in trials across three categories: cleaning, transportation and information.
Biometrics
At Orlando airport in the USA, a quick photo is all that is needed to board an international flight — no passport, no boarding card. Air New Zealand has introduced a biometric-enabled bag drop with many other airlines preparing to adopt the new technology. Government of India has already launched an initiative such as DigiYatra for a smoother travelling experience. By leveraging the AADHAR based biometric identification boarding experiences could become a hassle-experience in future. Facial recognition at automated kiosks before accessing the aircraft is another benefit of biometrics.
Virtual reality & Augmented reality
Virtual reality has been used for long for training purposes in the aviation industry but the application has expanded to tours and travels industry. The immersive viewing experience has forced airlines to invest in the technology for providing the viewers with immersive video content of travel destinations. Google Tango project is offering augmented reality advertisement solutions to publish content in a rich environment. San Jose International Airport, California has partnered with the Google Tango team to trial augmented reality technology for wayfinding, airport retail promotions and even AR billboards displaying destination information.
