Skift Take
If you think the global airline industry is impervious to change but in need of major disruption, you’re not alone. That’s why Skift and the Accenture Amadeus Alliance launched their first Air Pitch Startup Competition to highlight three companies that are bringing innovation to the sector.
At Skift Forum Europe this year, the Accenture Amadeus Alliance put out an open call to startups. Together with Skift, the Alliance was looking for creative solutions to intractable airline industry problems, involving not just ticket sales and distribution but also the in-flight experience and operational efficiency. After a month-long vetting process, three finalists were chosen to present their ideas to kick off the Skift Global Forum 2018, held in New York City this September.
“We’re looking for startups in the airline sector that are innovating, providing services to airlines,” said Skift founder Rafat Ali, in his introductory remarks for the finals.
The competition had over 50 startups apply. In the final round of the competition the startups Mekl.io, Volantio, and Wonder each gave five-minute pitches to — and fielded tough questions from — a panel of airline-industry executives as well as experts from the Accenture Amadeus Alliance in front of a crowd of 400-plus