PTE WORLD PREVIEW: Brian Cobb, Chief Innovation Officer, CVG Airport

How is CVG leveraging technology to enhance the passenger journey from curb to gate?

CVG approaches the passenger journey as a connected system rather than a series of handoffs. From the driveway inward to the runway, we are leveraging real-time data, spatial intelligence, and low-friction digital touchpoints to reduce uncertainty and improve flow. Platforms such as Infotap provide immediate, contextual engagement and sentiment capture, while technologies from Volan and Donovan Energy’s FLOW Parking Guidance System improve arrival predictability and wayfinding before passengers even enter the terminal. Inside the building, accessibility and navigation solutions like GoodMaps, Signapse, and Hello Lamp Post help passengers self-serve information and navigate confidently, regardless of language, ability, or familiarity with the airport.

How do you balance disruptive innovation with the need for operational stability and compliance?

We separate experimentation from operations, but we do not isolate it. Innovation at CVG is deliberate and designed to respect regulatory, safety and cyber-security realities. We pilot technologies in controlled environments, align early with regulators and OEMs, and ensure cyber-security and data governance are addressed before scale. The goal is not disruption for its own sake, but measurable improvement that frontline teams trust, regulators understand, and leadership can confidently support.

What innovations have had the most significant impact on passenger satisfaction at CVG?

The most impactful innovations are often the least visible. Improved wayfinding, clearer communications during irregular operations, faster access to relevant information, and inclusive design can materially reduce friction and anxiety for passengers. Tools like Infotap allow us to listen in real time, while accessibility technologies such as Signapse and MagnusCards ensure more travellers can move independently and confidently. These solutions improve satisfaction not by adding complexity, but by removing uncertainty.

How do you see personalisation shaping the future of airport experiences?

Personalisation will move from marketing-driven experiences to operationally relevant ones. The future is not about pushing offers, but about delivering the right information, guidance and support at the right moment based on context. That could mean adaptive wayfinding, proactive assistance for passengers who need more time, or operational decisions that reflect real passenger behaviour rather than assumptions. Personalisation, when done responsibly, becomes a tool for dignity, efficiency and trust.

Is CVG using Agentic AI? If so, where is it having the biggest impact?

Today, CVG is using early forms of agentic AI in decision-support roles rather than autonomous control. The biggest impact is in sensing, prioritisation, and exception awareness, identifying emerging issues across assets, flows and environments faster than human teams alone can. These systems support operators by surfacing what matters most, not by replacing judgment, but by improving situational awareness and response time.

What is the future potential of agentic AI in airport operations?

Importantly, agentic AI must remain explainable, auditable, and aligned with human oversight, especially in safety-critical environments like aviation.

The long-term potential lies in coordinated agents that can recommend, test and adapt operational responses across complex systems. This includes predicting congestion before it forms, reallocating resources dynamically, and learning from outcomes over time. Importantly, agentic AI must remain explainable, auditable, and aligned with human oversight, especially in safety-critical environments like aviation. The value is not autonomy alone, but resilient, adaptive operations.

If you could implement one transformative technology tomorrow, what would it be and why?

A fully integrated, campus-wide spatial intelligence layer that unifies sensors, assets, people and systems into a shared operational view. Not a static digital twin, but a living map that continuously learns and informs decisions in real time. This would accelerate everything from safety and accessibility to autonomy and energy optimisation, while providing a foundation that many other innovations can build upon.

What does the airport of the future look like from your perspective as Chief Innovation Officer?

Technology fades into the background while reliability, accessibility and resilience come forward.

The airport of the future is quieter, calmer, and more adaptive. Technology fades into the background while reliability, accessibility and resilience come forward. Operations are predictive rather than reactive. Passengers feel guided rather than managed. And airports function as platforms, not just terminals, capable of supporting innovation that extends into cities, logistics, healthcare and other complex environments.

What will your focus be at PTE? What are you there to talk about?

At PTE, our focus is on how airports can responsibly scale emerging technologies without overextending risk. We are there to talk about spatial intelligence, autonomy governance, inclusive passenger experiences, and the practical realities of deploying AI, IoT and robotics in live operations. Importantly, we are also there to discuss partnerships, how airports and technology providers can co-develop solutions that work in the real world, not just in labs. We're exceptionally pleased to be bringing six of our partner organisations within a CVG experiential booth at PTE Global.

What are you looking forward to learning from other airports at PTE?

PTE is invaluable for understanding how peers are navigating similar challenges at different scales and in different regulatory environments. We are particularly interested in lessons around change management, workforce adoption, cyber-security governance, and how others are measuring value beyond pilot success. The most valuable insights often come not from what worked perfectly, but from what required iteration and adjustment.