If you plan to use an AI agent to book your trips, there’s some bad news. Citing potential security risks and regulatory violations, United Airlines announced Wednesday that it will block all third-party AI agents or personal assistants from booking flights on its digital platforms.
The decision comes just days ahead of the holiday season, when many people are expected to use AI to research and confirm their travel plans. While United is all in on AI for research, it is worried that sharing sensitive information with these tools and granting them permission to book flights could lead to unauthorized changes to your tickets, account preferences, and loyalty programs.
“As third-party AI agents advance, we see the opportunities they present. However, at the same time, allowing them to interact directly with a United account or booking could involve sensitive actions, and we want to make sure we have established protections for travelers first,” United says in a press release.
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The carrier additionally flagged possible regulatory violations if passengers use AI for web check-ins, noting that FAA and DOT regulations require “human acknowledgment that bags do not contain banned substances like explosives.”
United’s ban on AI assistants and agents will affect individual customers, as well as travel agencies and aggregators. As Bloomberg reports, the prohibition also comes after the FTC launched an inquiry last month, seeking answers from United and several other companies on whether they changed ticket prices based on loyalty program participation and data obtained from AI algorithms.
United’s competitors, meanwhile, are considering ways to welcome AI agents. American Airlines and Delta told Fast Company that some AI tools would be allowed to complete bookings on their platforms, while Southwest Airlines launched a dedicated ChatGPT plug-in to support phased AI-powered bookings last month.
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