Air India harnesses AI for operational excellence with Microsoft Copilot for Microsoft 365

Preparing for growth with advanced technology

Founded by J.R.D. Tata, India’s first commercial pilot, Air India was born from the celebrated industrialist’s passion for aviation. Known globally for its exceptional hospitality and service, Air India was Asia’s first all-jet airline and among the first customers for the iconic Boeing 747, showcasing the airline’s commitment to innovative technology. In January 2022, the Tata Group reacquired Air India, heralding a significant transformation, termed by The Economist as ”the Everest of corporate turnarounds.”

As one of the world’s number-one growth markets, Air India currently operates 130-plus aircraft. It has recently placed an order for 470 more aircraft, which will make it one of the biggest airlines in the world, on par with the largest American carriers. In this highly competitive industry, success hinges on balancing revenue generation with operational efficiency. To set the groundwork for its five-year growth plan, Air India wanted to take advantage of advanced technology to stay ahead, continuing to concentrate on revenue drivers such as customer satisfaction, route relevance, and service quality. The airline aimed to address legacy issues, such as managing and gaining detailed insights into its operational data, including tracking and analyzing flight performance, delays, weather issues, and other operational metrics. It also wanted to more efficiently manage its resources like aircraft and crew, all which significantly impact the bottom line.

Air India is also focused on the employee experience, understanding that to attract and retain top talent, it needs to provide top-tier technology for them to do their jobs. Complex dashboards and systems made it difficult for staff to quickly obtain and analyze the data they needed to make informed decisions. Without efficient tools to analyze operations, Air India encountered high operational costs, stemming from not being able to promptly identify and address the root causes of flight delays and other inefficiencies, all of which affect the customer experience.

With customer experience, operational excellence, and the employee experience as the main priorities of its digital transformation, Air India looked to Microsoft to help investigate and summarize its flight and airport data more efficiently. An early adopter of Microsoft Copilot for Microsoft 365, Air India was already exploring the power of AI in nearly every aspect of its business. From human resources and finance to customer experience, engineering, and more, the airline wanted to delve even deeper into AI. “Technology will be an especially important differentiator for Air India, and having the wealth of technology talent available with the help of partners like Microsoft, we expect ourselves to be one of the foremost airlines in the world when it comes to technology,” says Dr. Satya Ramaswamy, Chief Digital and Technology Officer at Air India.

Streamlining operational efficiency with the power of AI

As Air India employees began using Copilot for their day-to-day activities and tasks—from email prioritization and scheduling to procurement, recruiting, and request for proposal (RFP) work—the airline’s leadership ensured adoption by encouraging employees to test it out and consider all different sorts of use cases. “At Air India, we clearly recognize the potential of Copilot in improving employee productivity,” explains Dr. Ramaswamy. “We want our associates to make Copilot usage a part of their behavior.” At the operational level, Air India also started hosting developer meetings to tie Copilot into app development. Collaborating with Microsoft, the airline provides tailored training for each department to optimize Copilot usage, aiming for seamless incorporation into its workflow.

Managing operational efficiency is crucial and involves the coordination of costly resources, such as aircraft, pilots, and cabin crew, around the globe. The airline industry also uses complex mathematical systems, with an abundance of data generated from commercial activities, including reservations, pricing, ticket cancellations, and other services. Air India knows that human analysis of this vast data is impractical, and the airline is keen on implementing advanced technology and AI. “Interpreting these data insights requires rare skills, not easily understood by everyone,” says Dr. Ramaswamy. “You need the help of very powerful technology that can dig into multiple layers of data and then unearth the gems that we can act upon to improve operational performance and customer service. AI helps airlines make sense of the massive amount of data coming our way.” With a goal of enhancing user experience with more accessible, on-demand insights integrated directly into its workflow, Air India understands the importance of fusing technology and insight into its operations. The company worked with Microsoft to build a plugin for Copilot for Microsoft 365 as a part of its digital transformation.

While monitoring the performance of the entire airline system, including planes, cabin crew, and ground infrastructure, the Copilot plugin lets Air India team members quickly understand complex data about flights, equipment, locations, and facilities through familiar natural language commands. In addition, team members can review and present data in charts and graphs using business intelligence systems, particularly Microsoft Power BI. Dr. Ramaswamy, who oversees the implementation of digital technologies for both consumer and enterprise aspects of Air India, notes, “Using Copilot allows us to naturally unearth these insights to know, for example, if there is something impacting the performance in a particular city or a certain type of aircraft.”

Before the Copilot plugin, experts were required to interpret and understand insights from data presentations by querying data, such as on-time performance at airports, but that process reveals only part of the story. “Copilot in Microsoft Teams tells a great story about the data,” explains Dr. Ramaswamy. “Using it, we can democratize the use of data rather than depend upon a few people who know how to interpret and tell the story behind it.” With Copilot, Air India can analyze large datasets quickly, outpacing human speed while providing clear narrative explanations.

Deva Joseph, Vice President and Head of Digital Development at Air India, notes that Air India collaborated with Microsoft to enhance data accessibility and built the Copilot plugin in only about 20 to 25 days. “We worked very closely with the Microsoft Teams engineering team, who were very supportive,” says Joseph. “It was magical to produce something at such a short notice.” Joseph also notes that the plugin is user-friendly, required no extensive training for users to get started, and allows them to type queries in plain English, aligned with how they typically go about their daily business and work. “Copilot is very simple to use,” he explains. “You don’t really have to train people, and we’ve gotten tremendous response from whoever has tried it out.”

Dr. Ramaswamy sees that the ability of various departments to understand and use data significantly affects top-line growth and operational efficiency. “Data is like a religion for us,” he explains. “We need to have a good understanding of the on-time performance of the company and what levers we need to pull to bring it back into a controlled fashion if there is a deviation in that performance. This can’t be done from a pure human angle.”

The Copilot plugin is used by key sectors, including airports for managing ground activities, cargo, engineering, commercial, and the digital and technology team, which is pivotal in maintaining Air India’s critical tech infrastructure. This strategic deployment across departments enhances the efficiency and effectiveness of operations, including the timely departure of planes, translating into a positive customer experience.

Air India initially explored a ChatGPT-based dashboard for flight operations insights but recognized the need for a more interactive and conversational approach. The Copilot plugin that the airline incorporated not only facilitates efficient data querying, but also helps operations managers quickly act on the information they receive. The plugin provides real-time access to information, eliminating the wait for responses from others and enabling quicker decision making.

Collaboration is essential for maintaining on-time performance at Air India, and addressing issues often requires the involvement of multiple stakeholders, such as catering, engineering, and digital departments. It’s not a one-to-one communication scenario—comprehensive teamwork is needed. “On-time performance of an airline is the result of collaboration between multiple different parts of the company,” explains Dr. Ramaswamy. “That’s where Microsoft Teams plays a role in making it all happen.”

By collaborating in Microsoft Teams, users can address and resolve operational issues like delays, streamlining the decision-making process. “Microsoft Teams with Copilot is a very powerful combination because at the end of the day, you need to act on the insights that you’re getting,” says Dr. Ramaswamy. “The Copilot plugin amplifies the potential of Teams because now you not only can get the insights to know what is exactly going on, but you’re also able to act on it immediately,” he adds.

With the Copilot plugin, operational delays and other issues are not just identified but resolved with a newfound efficiency. For instance, an operations manager can use this plugin to delve into flight time performance, unravel the causes behind last week’s delays, and make strategic decisions with newfound clarity and speed. This isn’t just about solving problems; it’s about transforming how Air India operates, marrying data insights with decisive action, thereby enhancing both operational effectiveness and customer satisfaction with a remarkable blend of technology and foresight.

Embracing tech innovation while expanding horizons

The Copilot plugin for Teams is revolutionizing Air India’s operations management. It’s a game-changer, allowing operations managers to swiftly pinpoint issues and collaborate with key stakeholders in Teams. Air India’s technological development and partnerships are a key competitive differentiator, and being part of the Tata Group, with its history of embracing cutting-edge technology, enhances this advantage. In addition, India’s strong human resources capability in tech and partnerships with companies like Microsoft fortify Air India’s tech-driven strategy.

At Air India, technological innovation is taking flight in exciting new ways. Copilot is transforming more than just flight operations. Every developer at the company is now harnessing the power of GitHub Copilot, a tool that’s transforming how they code. Meanwhile, the senior management team is embracing Copilot, with tailored Copilot systems being developed specifically for their needs. Even the CEO has access to custom-built systems that offer a comprehensive view of the company’s status, enabling deeper insights with the ability to ask follow-up questions. Dedicated persona-driven sessions are being planned so that Microsoft can tailor the usage of Copilot depending on the specific use case of that department.

Across the board, from the C-suite to various other roles, Copilot is becoming a key player, providing valuable support to employees at Air India as they make informed decisions in their day-to-day work. “We are building these bespoke Copilot systems to help each one of our CXOs and the employees below that level to understand the state of the business and be able to make intelligent decisions and actions,” says Dr. Ramaswamy. “Eventually, every single department of the company will be using this Copilot plugin, and of course Teams is the exclusive collaboration platform in the whole Air India group. It’s a natural mechanism for us to take advantage of the Copilot capabilities.” Looking ahead, Air India envisions expanding the plugin’s scope to encompass profitability, occupancy rates, and detailed route analytics, marking a significant leap in operational technology.

Air India’s deep-rooted connection to India’s market, people, and technological innovation, especially in partnership with tech giants like Microsoft, positions it uniquely in the global aviation sector. “We want the customers to think of Air India when they want to travel anywhere in the world,” Dr. Ramaswamy concludes. “And technology is a very important part of creating that experience.”

Find out more about Air India on X, Facebook, YouTube, and LinkedIn.