China Southern Airlines (CSA) held an AI innovation conference in Guangzhou on December 18 to present the latest applications of artificial intelligence in line with national and civil aviation development strategies.
At the event, the airline introduced several AI applications, including a smart travel assistant for passengers, the Tianji predictive model to predict operations and demand, the Tiance Aviation Solver designed to optimize schedules and operational decisions, and the Tiandun Safety Model to support risk identification and aviation safety management. Together, these systems aim to improve operational efficiency, decision support, and passenger service across airline networks.
Smart Travel Assistant, China's first AI application that covers a passenger's entire journey, is integrated into the CSA app and allows travelers to complete reservations, check-in, schedule changes, seat selection, and other services through natural language commands, as well as providing post-trip services, airport navigation, and interactive features. “The main advantage of the assistant is that it can complete multiple services with a single command, providing end-to-end support from ticketing and service recommendations to after-sales assistance,” said Deng Zhuonan, project leader of this innovation.
In the exhibition area, CSA also exhibited an AI digital staff transparent screen system. Project leader Meng Yutong said, “Passengers can ask questions in their native language, and the system instantly translates their questions to staff, who respond in Chinese, and their answers are translated in real time.” He added that the system maintains eye contact through a transparent screen and has already been installed at Beijing Daxing and Urumqi airports, supporting CSA's growing international flights.
The conference also hosted the 4th Annual CSA Innovation Awards, which recognized 77 solutions across seven tracks including operations, marketing, management, safety, equipment, services, and intelligent applications. Experts from governments, civil aviation, airlines, universities, and technology companies discussed the integration of AI across all aspects of aviation, with the aim of accelerating innovation and technology adoption.
Reporter: Zeng Xiangxing
Photo: Zeng Xiangxing
Editors: Hu Nan, James Campion, Shen He
