Delta’s AI Concierge Is Trying to Fix the Worst Thing About Travel. It Just Might Work

Every company is trying to figure out how to incorporate AI into its product or service. You can’t log into a website without seeing an AI feature. Even news sites are dropping AI summaries at the top of their articles.

Then there are the AI-powered support chatbots, which are mostly a terrible idea. If I go to a website looking for help, I almost never want to talk to a robot. Even if I know that the chatbot is a faster way to solve a lot of problems, I’d still rather talk to a human. Delta, however, figured out what might be the best AI chat tool I’ve seen yet, and it just might solve the worst thing about travel.

Back in January, Delta previewed its AI Concierge feature in the Fly Delta app. I’ve been using the beta version since November, including on a week-long trip to Europe. I used it to check flight status, track bags, and ask all kinds of questions about my trips. I’ve tried to see how far I could push it.

To be completely honest, it doesn’t work—yet. At least, not the way Delta wants it to. And definitely not the way travelers will want to use it. The experience is something that is clearly unfinished, occasionally frustrating, and still one of the most interesting things Delta has built in years.

Look, of all the things AI promises to solve, the one problem I’m genuinely excited about is travel. It’s not that travel is broken in some abstract way, but because the worst parts of it are painfully specific. Everyone understands the frustration of delayed flights and missed connections. No one likes gate changes that appear five minutes before boarding, or bags that don’t appear at all. It’s the feeling that no one, including the airline, has a complete picture of what’s happening to you right now.

That feeling is the worst thing about travel.

Delta clearly thinks so, too. The pitch, last year at CES, was simple and ambitious. This assistant would know everything about your trip. You could talk to it in natural language. It would proactively keep you updated. It could help you change seats, track your bags, and eventually even rebook flights when things go sideways.