Riyadh Air’s AI‑powered operations create agility across the business and unify employee and guest experiences, setting a new benchmark in aviation
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia and ARMONK, N.Y., Dec. 8, 2025 – At IBM Think Riyadh 2025, IBM (NYSE: IBM) and Riyadh Air announced a landmark partnership that positions Riyadh Air as the world’s first AI‑native airline. Built from the ground up without legacy work‑arounds, the airline’s AI‑driven platform is designed to transform both guest journeys and employee workflows, establishing a new standard for innovation in the aviation sector.
Riyadh Air is leveraging IBM Consulting’s industry expertise, extensive partner ecosystem, and the IBM watsonx Orchestrate platform to function as an AI‑native enterprise from day one. IBM Consulting coordinated a complex rollout spanning 59 workstreams and more than 60 technology partners, including Adobe, Apple, FLYR, and Microsoft. By employing the IBM Consulting Advantage delivery framework—an AI‑enhanced methodology for rapid value creation—consultants ensured seamless execution of the airline’s end‑to‑end technology strategy.
Initial test flights are already in the air, with full commercial service slated for early 2026. The three‑year collaboration now reaches a critical juncture, marking the transition from pilot projects to sustained operational scale.
“We faced a clear choice: be the last airline built on legacy technology or the first built on the platforms that will define the next decade of aviation,” said Adam Boukadida, CFO of Riyadh Air. “With IBM, we removed fifty years of legacy in a single stroke. Riyadh Air isn’t just built for today; it’s built for the future, creating a pathway for other carriers to follow.”
“Embedding AI into the very foundation of its operations, Riyadh Air is setting a new blueprint for what a modern, adaptive enterprise looks like,” said Mohamad Ali, Senior Vice President of IBM Consulting. “As a company born in the AI era, Riyadh Air is redefining what’s possible in aviation, and we’re proud to help turn that vision into reality.”
Bringing Together Employee and Guest Experiences
Riyadh Air is reimagining both employee work and traveler interaction through generative and agentic AI capabilities. The goal is a synchronized environment where people and technology deliver effortless travel.
- Employee Experience – A personalized digital workplace powered by AI agents will serve as a single, chat‑first entry point for human‑resources services, streamlining workflows and accelerating self‑service for a workforce that plans to double in the next 12 months.
- Crew Enablement – AI‑driven mobile applications will fuse employee and guest journeys. Using watsonx Orchestrate, the airline will deploy an agentic AI concierge that is trustworthy, proactive, context‑aware, and capable of recommending next‑best actions—such as prompting crews to offer fast‑track services to passengers who are running late.
- Customer Care – AI‑enabled voice bots and agent‑assist tools will empower service agents to deliver attentive, personalized support by leveraging contextual data that anticipates traveler needs.
Operational Efficiency as the Engine for Innovation
From day one, Riyadh Air has been built for efficiency rather than incremental productivity gains. Starting with a clean digital slate, the airline is using AI to uncover new revenue streams and reinvest in continual innovation.
IBM Consulting deployed an enterprise performance management suite that consolidates financial, operational, and commercial data across the organization. Automated planning, budgeting, forecasting, and analytics now provide real‑time insights, enabling data‑driven decision‑making. This integrated foundation enhances route profitability, optimizes resource allocation, and strengthens overall business performance.
Together, IBM and Riyadh Air have created an AI‑native enterprise with the digital strategy, architecture, and operating models required to expand Saudi Arabia’s connectivity to more than 100 destinations, serving millions of travelers by 2030.
About Riyadh Air
Riyadh Air is a world‑class carrier owned by the Public Investment Fund. Launched in March 2023, the airline is digitally led, fully serviced, and committed to best‑in‑class sustainability and safety practices. Its fleet features state‑of‑the‑art cabins, next‑generation in‑flight entertainment, and connectivity solutions, all underpinned by a hospitality ethos rooted in authentic Saudi warmth.
About IBM
IBM is a leading provider of hybrid cloud, artificial intelligence, and consulting services. Serving clients in more than 175 countries, IBM helps organizations extract insights from data, streamline processes, reduce costs, and gain competitive advantage. Thousands of government and enterprise customers rely on IBM’s hybrid cloud platform and Red Hat OpenShift for rapid, secure digital transformation. IBM’s innovations span AI, quantum computing, industry‑specific cloud solutions, and consulting, all backed by a long‑standing commitment to trust, transparency, responsibility, inclusivity, and service.
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