Microsoft Azure OpenAI Drives Conversion and Personalized Discovery for Alaska Airlines

Alaska Airlines recognized that travelers faced significant friction during the discovery phase, spending an average of 40 hours researching new destinations. Despite having a "Where We Fly" tool available on their website, engagement remained below 1% as users found the analytical approach to planning exhausting and impersonal. To transform trip planning into an emotional and intuitive journey, the airline partnered with Microsoft to develop "Alaska Inspires," a natural language search tool integrated with Azure OpenAI Service.

The solution, built using Azure AI Foundry Models, allows guests to search for destinations using conversational queries about specific vibes or activities in over 90 languages. By utilizing retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) and connecting to the airline's loyalty program, the system provides personalized recommendations grounded in real-time data from internal APIs. The technical team successfully prototyped and scaled the application in less than 6 months, leveraging the secure Azure environment to ensure accurate pricing and destination information while eliminating model hallucinations.

The implementation has shifted how guests interact with the brand, driving a 7.16% conversion rate that significantly outperforms the standard 5% booking widget benchmark. Beyond direct revenue impact, the tool has streamlined the customer journey by reducing destination planning time by 75%. With a 90% satisfaction rating and recognition as a "Most Innovative Airline Initiative," the project demonstrates the strategic value of centering generative AI within the guest experience to drive operational efficiency and customer loyalty.