Delta Air Lines Expands AI Pricing to 20% of Fares by Year-End

Delta Air Lines is rapidly expanding its use of artificial intelligence to set individual ticket prices, with plans to increase AI-determined fares from 3% to 20% by the end of 2025 and eventually eliminate static pricing altogether. The airline's president, Glen Hauenstein, describes this shift as a complete reengineering of pricing strategy, leveraging AI technology provided by Fetcherr to analyze millions of data points in real time and personalize fares based on customer behavior and willingness to pay. While Delta sees this dynamic pricing as a way to better match customer budgets with airline profitability, critics, including Democratic Arizona Senator Ruben Gallego, have labeled the approach as potentially predatory, warning it could exploit consumers by charging different prices for the same seats. Delta emphasizes a cautious rollout with ongoing testing to avoid issues, aiming to offer more personalized pricing options and services across cabins. This move reflects a broader trend in the airline industry toward sophisticated AI-driven dynamic pricing, though it raises concerns about fairness and transparency for passengers.