Naviq joins AAA to help scale airport AI

Naviq has joined the Airports AI Alliance (AAA), with the recently launched company aiming to help airports make better use of operational data and move artificial intelligence beyond individual trials.

Launched in July as part of IBS Group, Naviq works across legacy system modernisation, cloud migration, operational data and AI, with a particular focus on connecting technologies and information that have traditionally sat in separate systems.

“Airports are modernising their legacy airport technology, and that spans from airport operational databases [AODB] to all kinds of supporting systems, on-prem to cloud migrations and bringing in new state-of-the-art SaaS solutions into their environment,” Kay Hellwig (pictured), Director of Sales, Europe and Africa at Naviq, told the Alliance.

“We help airports to anticipate disruptions rather than just react. How they can make better use of operational data, data and AI is a big topic, and we want to help them move from individual POCs to really an enterprise AI use that brings value to the airport.”

Hellwig highlighted a recent project with a customer that already held the information it needed but struggled to use it effectively because it was spread across different systems.

“The data is scattered across systems,” he said. “We have invested in a platform that accelerates bringing data together using AI.”

According to Hellwig, the customer was able to combine information from different sources three to five times faster than through a conventional data lake development process. Naviq then added pre-built key performance indicators and a platform on which further AI use cases could be developed.

“They’ve used that to create new KPIs that help them steer the business better and make better and faster decisions in their operational day-to-day work,” he said.

Hellwig sees a similar opportunity at an industry level, where operational information is divided between airports, airlines, ground handlers and other organisations.

“Sharing data is important because then you can gain other insights and you can optimise the system overall,” he said.

Greater data exchange with airport retailers could also open up commercial applications, although Hellwig said this would depend on appropriate platforms, a clear benefit for the organisations involved and sufficient trust to share information.

Through its AAA membership, Naviq plans to contribute experience from its work with airports, airlines and ground handlers while learning from deployments across the Alliance’s airport membership.

“It’s about really openly discussing what is happening, what works well, what doesn’t work well, best practice exchange, and that’s where we can contribute with our domain experience,” Hellwig said.

The company also sees the Alliance as an opportunity to test its assumptions about airports’ priorities against the experience of those implementing AI in operational environments.

“While we do a lot of research and we have industry experts, it’s always good to mirror our understanding and our view with the airports and see whether that’s the right thing or where else do we need to look,” Hellwig said.

For Hellwig, the longer-term shift is therefore less about replacing individual systems than changing how airports use technology, data and AI across their operations.

“What will happen is not just product replacements at airports,” he said. “It’s really changing how they work.”

Image: Naviq