In a groundbreaking move for the aviation industry, Riyadh Air and IBM launch the world’s first AI-native airline, an airline built from scratch with artificial intelligence at the heart of its operations, guest services, and employee workflows.

The collaboration, announced at IBM Think Riyadh 2025, marks a bold step away from legacy systems. Instead, Riyadh Air will leverage IBM Consulting, the IBM watsonx Orchestrate platform, and support from a broad ecosystem of over 60 technology partners including major vendors like Adobe, Apple, FLYR, and Microsoft to build a fully integrated, AI-driven airline infrastructure from day one.

What “AI-Native” Really Means: A Fully Integrated Intelligent Airline Ecosystem

Unlike the incremental digital upgrades that have characterized the aviation industry over the past 20 years, an AI-native airline is fundamentally different. Riyadh Air is not merely adopting AI tools—it is embedding AI into the DNA of the organization. From HR to maintenance, from crew operations to passenger services, every workflow is being reimagined using intelligent systems designed to learn, adapt and enhance decision-making in real time.

1. A Reinvented Employee Experience Powered by AI

Riyadh Air plans to double its workforce within a year, making employee enablement a central priority. To support rapid growth, the airline is implementing an immersive, chat-first digital workplace where employees interact with AI agents that provide instant access to HR services, scheduling tools, training modules, and workflow automation.

Routine processes such as shift adjustments, leave requests, training assignments, and compliance documentation will be automated through AI. This reduces administrative overhead, accelerates onboarding, and improves daily productivity—especially important in an industry where speed, accuracy, and coordination are critical.

Through the watsonx suite, employees gain access to virtual assistants that understand conversational queries, proactively recommend actions, and connect staff to real-time updates and operational insights.

2. Transforming Crew and Customer Service with AI Intelligence

Riyadh Air’s vision for customer service goes far beyond traditional hospitality. The airline is equipping its flight crew and ground service teams with AI-powered mobile tools capable of managing real-time interactions and anticipating passenger needs.

For example:

• If a traveler is running late through the airport, AI systems can flag their status and prompt staff to offer fast-track assistance.

• If a passenger has strict dietary preferences, the system can alert the crew and propose alternatives.

• For irregular operations—such as delays or gate changes—the AI orchestrates rapid communication and coordinated response across teams.

This kind of context-aware, predictive service is designed to elevate the passenger experience, making travel smoother, faster, and more personalized.

3. Data-Driven Operations & Strategic Decision-Making

Behind the scenes, Riyadh Air aims to build one of the most advanced operational ecosystems in the global airline industry. Using automated forecasting and AI-optimized planning tools offered through IBM’s enterprise AI platform, the airline will handle:

• Demand forecasting

• Fleet and crew planning

• Route and profitability analytics

• Predictive maintenance

• Real-time resource allocation

• Operational risk assessments

This integrated model empowers leadership teams to make quicker and more informed decisions, guided by data rather than tradition or intuition.

The result is an airline that can scale rapidly, respond dynamically to market fluctuations, and maximize efficiency with levels of precision that were previously unachievable in aviation.

Building from a Clean Slate: Riyadh Air’s Digital Advantage

Most global airlines are weighed down by complex layers of legacy IT systems built decades ago. These fragmented infrastructures often hinder rapid innovation, making upgrades costly, time-consuming and sometimes impossible without disrupting operations.

Riyadh Air, however, is starting fresh.

With no inherited IT burden, the airline is constructing a modern, cloud-native, AI-first architecture that enables:

• Faster deployment of new features

• Rapid integration of emerging technologies

• Scalable global operations

• Lower long-term IT maintenance costs

• Seamless interoperability between systems

This clean-slate approach allows Riyadh Air to build an organization that is inherently agile, adaptable, and positioned for long-term innovation—an enormous competitive advantage in a sector undergoing digital transformation.

A Three-Year Plan: From Initial Launch to Full Commercial Service

The collaboration between Riyadh Air and IBM spans an ambitious three-year transformation roadmap. Together, the teams are working across 59 strategic workstreams, supported by dozens of leading technology partners contributing domain expertise across aviation tech, AI, cloud infrastructure, customer experience design, cybersecurity, and enterprise software.

Although some limited operations have already begun, the airline plans to roll out full-scale commercial services in early 2026. The lead-up period will focus on integrating AI systems, completing digital operations frameworks, refining guest experience journeys, and ensuring all workflows—from baggage handling to customer support—are optimized for efficiency and personalization.

By launch time, Riyadh Air expects its AI-native infrastructure to be operational across nearly all business units, enabling the airline to begin commercial service with a fully automated and streamlined backbone.

Why This Partnership Could Transform the Aviation Industry

The Riyadh Air–IBM collaboration has the potential to become a global reference point for how new airlines are built in the digital age. Beyond the immediate benefits to Riyadh Air, this initiative represents a possible blueprint for future aviation models.

1. A Clean-Slate Digital Infrastructure Sets New Standards

Starting from scratch allows Riyadh Air to implement today’s most advanced technologies without retrofitting them into outdated structures. This differs dramatically from legacy carriers, which often struggle to modernize due to expensive, multi-layered IT environments.

2. AI-Driven Personalization Enhances Every Passenger Touchpoint

Through continuous learning and real-time responsiveness, the airline will be able to tailor services at a level few competitors can match—from hyper-personalized offers to adaptive in-flight services. This could shift customer expectations for what modern air travel should feel like.

3. Scalable Growth Supported by Flexible AI Architecture

Riyadh Air aims to connect over 100 destinations by 2030, requiring a solution that can scale quickly. AI-native systems enable efficient expansion without multiplying operational complexity.

4. A New Industry Benchmark for Airline Digital Design

If Riyadh Air successfully implements its AI-native strategy, it could inspire other emerging airlines—and even motivate legacy carriers—to reexamine their technology foundations. For the aviation industry, this could mark the beginning of a new era where digital agility is as essential as fleet size or route networks.

Leadership Perspectives: Reimagining the Airline of the Future

Executives from both Riyadh Air and IBM have emphasized the significance of this initiative not just for their companies, but for aviation as a whole.

The CFO of Riyadh Air expressed the airline’s strategic choice candidly:
“We could either become the last airline built on legacy technology or the first built on the platforms that will define the next decade of aviation.”

By partnering with IBM, the airline chose innovation over tradition. As the CFO noted, this partnership allowed them to “strip out fifty years of legacy in a single stroke.”

From IBM’s perspective, the collaboration demonstrates to global enterprises how AI can be embedded at scale. IBM described the project as a “blueprint for what a modern, adaptive, AI-native enterprise can look like.” The partnership showcases IBM’s capabilities in orchestrating large-scale transformation programs through its watsonx platform and a vast ecosystem of technology partners.

Conclusion: A Landmark Moment for Aviation’s Digital Transformation

The creation of the world’s first AI-native airline marks a historic milestone that could redefine the future of air travel. Riyadh Air and IBM are pioneering an aviation ecosystem built on intelligence, automation, and real-time decision-making from day one. By embedding AI at every operational layer—from crew scheduling and customer service to forecasting and management—Riyadh Air is positioning itself as one of the most technologically advanced airlines ever launched.

As the airline begins full commercial operations in 2026, the global aviation industry will be closely watching. If successful, this AI-native model may set a new standard for airline design and inspire a wave of next-generation carriers that prioritize digital-first architecture, intelligent automation, and personalized guest experiences.

Riyadh Air’s approach represents more than technological innovation—it is a bold reimagination of what an airline can be when built with the future in mind.

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