Vanessa Hudson hints at plans to accelerate AI adoption at Qantas
Qantas chief executive Vanessa Hudson has argued that AI's value is beyond just reducing headcount, according to reports, as the Australian flag carrier moves forward with its adoption of the technology.
Hudson spoke at the Macquarie conference in Sydney, where she shared details about the company's plan to further adopt AI.
But the CEO stressed that plans to accelerate the airline's AI adoption were not just about headcount.
"I don't put limits in terms of the way we're thinking about AI and I don't think it's the right thing to only think about the value that AI can give is through headcount reduction," she said as quoted by The Australian.
Hudson made the remarks as she pointed out that AI can help Qantas "do things a lot more efficiently."
Among the current or potential uses of AI in the organisation is better selling techniques and the prediction of aircraft maintenance.
It can also help the airline schedule its aircraft more efficiently, match rosters with schedules, and manage customers who are potentially disrupted, according to the CEO, as reported by The Australian.
"In terms of the amount of use cases we can see for AI, we have more use cases than we can actually execute in the short term, we're very excited about what AI does," Hudson added.
Hudson weighed in on AI's impact on headcount as Qantas recently cut 400 head office roles. It was also accused earlier this year of replacing 30 roles at its Mascot location with AI, a move that the airline denied.
Authorities across Australia have warned that AI can potentially eliminate at least 4% of the country's jobs.
It follows previous precautions from experts globally that replacing employees based on AI can generate further risk for organisations.
"Don't make workforce decisions based on AI potential that hasn't been proven yet," an insight from the experts' report said. "Getting ahead of what AI can actually deliver today creates risk, not efficiency."
