American Airlines CEO Robert Isom expressed concern over Delta’s use of artificial intelligence to price airfare, implying that it constituted “bait and switch” and “trickery.” Isom says American Airlines will use AI in a way that will build customer trust, not tear it apart.
American Airlines CEO Is Skeptical Of How Delta Air Lines Is Using AI
The subject came up at this week’s Q2 2025 earnings call, where AA posted record quarterly revenue of $14.4 billion but profit of $599 million, which disappointed investors.
Shannon Doherty, an analyst at Deutsche Bank, asked, “One of your competitors was talking about using AI more for pricing. How do you think about that? And is that something that you’re considering or already experimenting with? Thanks.”
Isom replied:
Thanks. And I appreciate the question, because I quite frankly think that some of the things I’ve heard are just not good. For American, we will use AI to improve our ability to operate the airline. We’re going to be more efficient because of it. We’re going to be able to our team members are gonna have an easier time of doing their jobs.
For our customers, it’s going to improve their customer experience. We’re gonna be able to give them the ability to see more of the amenities that we can offer. That we’re going be able to serve them in a way that when they do run into difficulties, that they can recover faster. We have projects underway now that are all aligned in that fashion. We talked about operational difficulties.
One of the big AI investments we’ve made is in a project that we call HEAT that allows us to rebuild the operation as quickly as possible going forward. So for us, of course, we’re going to find ways to get our product in front of consumers. But consumers need to know that they can trust American. Okay?
This is not about bait and switch. This is not about tricking. And others that talk about using AI in that way, I don’t think it’s appropriate. And certainly, American, it’s not something we will do.
Which competitor is talking about using AI to bait and switch or trick travelers? While Delta has certainly drawn attention to itself for its aggressive use of AI in pricing airfare, it has made clear this week that it has neither the plan nor the technology to offer everyone their own price based on what the algorithm determines each shopper will pay. Instead, AI will be used to more dynamically price airfare on a systemwide basis. Delta says:
“There is no fare product Delta has ever used, is testing, or plans to use that targets customers with individualized offers based on personal information or otherwise. A variety of market forces drive the dynamic pricing model that’s been used in the global industry for decades, with new tech simply streamlining this process. Delta always complies with regulations around pricing and disclosures.”
Practically, that may mean airfare in a market changing 20-25 times in a day instead of 8-10 times with more dynamic, AI-driven fare bucket availability. Consumers will benefit in some cases and lose in some cases, but at least now there is no nefarious plot to rip off frequent flyers (I’d say the biger culprit there is the return of punitive one-way pricing, with carriers led by Delta charging more for two one-ways than a round-trip ticket with the same flights in many markets).
> Read More: Delta Air Lines Faces Scrutiny Over AI-Powered Ticket Pricing
Where AA Needs To Use AI…And Where It Should Not
Isom mentions other uses for AI beyond pricing that includes operational reliability. Specifically, AI can be used to get flights back on track during irregular operations and also to keep customers updated and informed. AA still needs help getting the simple things right, such as offering easy rebooking on the app during delays and cancellations or automatically pushing meal and hotel vouchers, as Delta and United Airlines already do so well.
A word of caution to AA, though. It seems clear to me that it has outsourced customer service to AA and some of the responses passengers receive are just horrible…clearly generated without any human thought and input. AA is doubtlessly a powerful tool that can help customer service agents respond to customers in a more effecient way, but it cannot be a replacement for humans (at least at this point). If AA wants to be a premium carrier, it must take seriously communication from and to its passengers.
CONCLUSION
American Airlines pledges it will use AI responsibly, with CEO Isom implying that Delta is not. That assumes facts not in evidence, at least at this point. AI is a neutral tool that can be used to help or to harm. There’s great potential in making AA a better carrier through AI. Rather than expressing faux concern over what Delta is doing, that should be the focus of AA right now.
image: @robert_isom / Instagram // Hat Tip: View From The Wing
“ Shannon Doherty, an analyst at Deutsche Bank”
Loved her in 90210, thought she died. I did have her in Dead Pools for years but like Annette Funicello and others, she burnt dollars in contests year after year outliving their diagnoses.
As for Isom, I’ll believe it when I see it. Meanwhile he needs to do something about the overcrowding at the Admirals Club in Miami where it’s SRO daily. What an embarrassment, even the sh#tty AMEX clubs limit entry when there is no room.
I think you have a new too many typos today
Let me see if I’ve got this straight: if my wife and I are traveling for business on the same PNR to some domestic location then AA won’t allow business program accrual and if we’re booked on separate PNR’s so we actually can get business program accrual then we pay double the price but American is accusing other airlines of improper practices? Pot, meet kettle.
DL made a PR mistake here. I suggest they could have talked about using AI to tackle the momentous task of flight pricing. How many prices changes do they make each day? They could have highlighted they would not target individuals (not highlighting they target “types”). I fully expect if they are smart, they will issue some sort of passengers’ bill of rights vis-a-vis AI.