Qatar Airways Unveils First-Ever AI-Powered Virtual Cabin Crew

Qatar Airways has made a groundbreaking announcement at ITB Berlin 2024, unveiling its holographic virtual cabin crew, Sama 2.0. This marks the first time an airline has developed an Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered digital human cabin crew to assist passengers in curating their travel experiences.

Sama, which translates to ”sky” in Arabic, was the highlight of the Qatar Airways stand at ITB Berlin, the world’s largest travel and tourism trade event. Enabled by industry-leading conversational AI, Sama will continue to learn and develop over time, improving responses through passenger interactions.

Sama 2.0 can answer real-time questions about Qatar Airways FAQs, destinations, support tips, and more. Passengers can access Sama through QVerse, Qatar Airways’ immersive digital platform, and the Qatar Airways app.

The development of Sama is a result of a partnership between Qatar Airways and UneeQ, a leader in AI digital human technology. This collaboration leverages UneeQ’s innovative platform to enhance the digital travel experience and set new standards in the aviation industry. The unique cabin crew is set to create benchmarks for personalised and functional service interactions in air travel.

Babar Rahman, Vice President of Marketing at Qatar Airways, said, “Sama 2.0 represents our relentless pursuit of innovation and embodies Qatar Airways’Airways’ values of exceptional service and hospitality. This is a monumental point in spearheading the successful synergy between technology and human connection—not only for Qatar Airways but also for the industry at large. Qatar Airways affirms its commitment to leading and collaborating with innovation experts to create pioneering products and services for its customers.”

Danny Tomsett, UneeQ’s Chief Executive Officer, added, “Sama embodies UneeQ’ sUneeQ’s commitment to blending technology with empathy and personalisation, providing an innovative solution that aligns with Qatar Airways’ reputation for world-class service. She’s a testament to the endless possibilities of AI, capable of delivering personalised and engaging interactions that mirror human conversation.”

Qatar Airways has been continually lauded for its innovative efforts in enhancing passenger experiences. The latest recognition was from the World Travel Tech Awards for the World’s Best Airline Website.

In addition to Sama, Qatar Airways recently unveiled its Generative AI experience for hassle-free and personalised travel planning at the Web Summit Qatar. The experience utilises comprehensive visual interactions and an interactive 3D map to understand customers’ travel preferences, eliminating manual searches. Customers can thus seamlessly receive suggestions for their dream journeys across Qatar Airways’ network of over 170 destinations.