Retail Tech targets

The idea of the PTS event was to bring together the tech companies that are 'joining the dots' between every aspect of the passenger experience, and certainly a tour of the stands soon showed how technology can be used to create a seamless and personalised passenger journey and increase retail revenues.

Held as part of the Passenger Experience Week in Hamburg, the show featured cutting-edge innovators in big data, machine learning and predictive analysis.

Analytics company Black Swan Data probably won the prize for the biggest announcement, unveiling an alliance with Panasonic and gategroup which is set to break new ground by allowing pre-ordering of meals based on accurate predictions of what particular types of passengers on certain routes are most likely to want. Gategroup also unveiled a new application for onboard ordering created in collaboration with the tech partner (read more on page 37).

The new software is expected to help cut waste by up to 60%, as well as securing 15% in cost savings. The collaboration shows how data analytics can help passengers get greater choice and control over their onboard experience, in a way that is achievable logistically for the airline and their caterer.

Gary Townsend, cto at Black Swan said: "The passenger can browse product online and when it comes to paying, the system pairs with their personal device and the order goes direct to the crew to retrieve immediately. When the passenger has purchased once, they can save their details to set a one-click buying process, similar to on Amazon, so there is no need to supply details for each purchase."

Other innovations impacting the onboard retail sector include chatbots, new e-commerce platforms, cabin management tools and the growing range of passenger engagement technologies.

Data analytics and artificial intelligence are transforming the travel experience and opening up online retail opportunities. Benjamin

Coren toured the new Passenger Technology Solutions (PTS) stands to find out how