Heathrow extends Adobe deal to boost AI travel search

Adobe and Heathrow Airport have extended their partnership to support the airport's digital operations, focusing on Heathrow's website and AI-led customer communications.

The agreement will support services for more than 84 million passengers a year, as well as digital information for communities and government stakeholders. Heathrow's main website attracts more than 50 million visitors annually.

As part of Heathrow's wider digital overhaul, Adobe's customer experience and AI tools will underpin a new flagship website built on Adobe technology. Heathrow also plans to use Adobe Brand Visibility to improve how its information appears across AI-driven search and answer platforms.

The move reflects a broader shift in travel search behaviour, as passengers increasingly use generative AI tools to research journeys before visiting an airline or airport website directly. Heathrow wants its information to appear accurately when users ask questions through services such as ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Microsoft Copilot and Perplexity AI.

Under the arrangement, Heathrow will use Adobe Experience Manager as part of its website infrastructure. The system is designed to help the airport publish and manage content across digital channels for different audiences, including passengers seeking travel updates, people looking for accessibility information, local communities and government bodies.

Adobe Brand Visibility will also monitor how Heathrow content is cited and presented on major AI platforms. This includes identifying gaps in search visibility and checking whether information returned by AI tools matches Heathrow's published material.

According to Adobe, the companies have worked together for more than a decade. This latest phase focuses on adapting Heathrow's digital presence to changes in how people find information online, particularly as conversational AI becomes a more common starting point for trip planning.

Research cited by Adobe found that one in four consumers now use AI platforms as their primary source of information when making travel decisions. That shift has implications for airports, airlines and other travel operators that have traditionally relied on websites, apps and conventional search rankings to reach customers.

Digital shift

For Heathrow, the project is part of a broader effort to improve the consistency of information across its online channels. The aim is to ensure passengers receive the right information whether they visit Heathrow's website directly or ask questions through a large language model.

Stephen Glenfield, Head of Digital at Heathrow, said: "At Heathrow, our purpose is simple: to make every journey better, for passengers, communities and the businesses that depend on us. As we continue to grow, Adobe gives us the AI and customer experience technology to deliver deeper, more meaningful passenger relationships that weren't possible before. Working with Adobe, we are able to make sure that passengers get the right information whether they are on our website or querying via an LLM."

As one of the world's busiest airports, Heathrow faces growing pressure to provide clear, timely digital information as travellers expect more tailored updates before and during journeys. Airports also serve a wider range of online users, from passengers checking terminal guidance to residents seeking community information and officials reviewing policy or operational material.

The website revamp is not limited to consumer marketing. The platform is intended to serve passengers, communities and government stakeholders through a consistent set of digital touchpoints, reinforcing the site's broader role as a central information hub.

AI discovery

For Adobe, the Heathrow contract highlights a commercial opportunity linked to the rise of AI-led search. Technology suppliers are increasingly offering tools that help organisations ensure their material can be found, cited and represented accurately by generative AI systems, rather than only by traditional search engines.

Nathan Hancock, Vice President and Managing Director for the UK, Ireland, Middle East and Africa at Adobe, said: "Heathrow is one of the world's greatest transport hubs and after more than a decade working together, we understand the complexity involved in serving over 84 million passengers every year. This partnership brings Adobe's agentic AI and customer experience technology together, to personalise those passenger relationships and ensure Heathrow's content is visible and accurate in a world where AI is increasingly the first stop on the travel journey."

The partnership also shows how large transport operators are reassessing digital strategy as AI changes the path between a traveller's question and the source of information. Rather than relying solely on direct website visits, airports now need to ensure their data is available and accurately interpreted across a growing number of third-party AI interfaces.

Heathrow said the system will help passengers find information on travel, accessibility programmes, community engagement, and government and stakeholder resources across web browsers and AI-powered platforms.