Your palms are sweating. Your heart isn’t racing yet, but it’s moved from idle to revving. You have 20 minutes to get to your gate. The line in front of you? A family with 9 kids under the age of 11 with lustrous hair. 90% chance they’re going to get stalled while the agent confiscates their Costco sized bottle of conditioner. Behind them? Two grandparents that haven’t flown since the 70’s. They probably have more metal in their bodies than Wolverine. Your heart rate elevates to the redline. You try to check your watch but the sweat has made your wrists so slippery, it keeps sliding to the other side of your wrist. You’re cooked. Suddenly, a broad shouldered TSA agent with a million dollar smile looks at you and opens a new gate. You’re through. You have a whole 12 minutes to get to your gate. An eternity for you, who’s used to diving through the closing gate door like Indiana Jones to make your flight. But now you’re starving. Oh yeah, you’re a vegan with a gluten allergy. And you forgot to buy your partner a gift. What do you do?*

*This story is fictitious. But the stress is real.

Airport concessions programs are on the brink of a seismic shift—and it’s being driven not just by real estate or retail trends, but by artificial intelligence. While most airport operators and developers are still focused on foot traffic and square footage, some of the most powerful opportunities are coming from tools passengers already use before they ever reach the terminal: ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and new AI concierge platforms.

Let’s unpack why.

How do passengers make buying decisions today? For the most part, proximity. Whatever they walk past that gets their attention: that’s where they eat or shop. Or in too many cases, don’t. It’s why concourse emplacements and foot traffic are the biggest drivers of space economics. But what if rather than relying on an advertising board or concessions map, and hoping for reliable information, passengers could just ask their favorite AI tool to guide them.

Well that’s what’s happening now. When passengers ask ChatGPT or Google Gemini “What should I eat at LAX?” or “Where can I shop while on a layover at JFK?”, those tools now generate curated, purchase-driven answers—often with booking links, reviews, and brand preferences built in.

That means airport brands that optimize for AI visibility will be chosen more often, even if they’re not the biggest or flashiest tenants. The new digital battle isn’t for shelf space—it’s for mindshare in the passenger’s pocket.

This shift demands that airports and operators rethink how they structure digital presence:

• Real-time menus and availability must be indexable.
• Retailers must feed structured data (think Shopify, Square, or POS integrations) into platforms AI tools pull from.
• Personalization will come from loyalty programs, AI chat history, and preferred payment platforms—not from impulse buys alone.

Consider the gift you want to buy your partner. What if they really would love something local that reflects the character of the city? AI tools can recommend not just stores to visit, but unique products to buy, limited time memorabilia, or items that resonate with your partner’s preferences. One purchase away from a free set of cufflinks at your favorite clothier? Rather than bookmarking it for later and shopping online, why not buy it now? As concourse specialty retail struggles to break through pricing competition and quick delivery from online sales, finding new ways to create value from in-terminal purchases isn’t just a nice to have anymore, it’s a the only way for many retailers to survive.

Airport authorities and developers should already be:

• Auditing their concessions’ digital visibility in AI tools
• Integrating ordering and pickup platforms
• Exploring partnerships with or developing AI shopping aggregators
• Updating RFP scoring to reward digital readiness and AI-based discoverability

And perhaps most importantly: shifting from “location, location, location” to “visibility, data, fulfillment.”

For developers: the most valuable tenants tomorrow may not be the biggest rent payers—they’ll be the most discoverable and digitally integrated.

For brands: AI tools are the new storefront. Your airport strategy should include API access, chatbot optimization, and omnichannel fulfillment—starting now.

At Clearport, we believe the future of non-aeronautical revenue lies at the intersection of experience, discoverability, and data. We work with airports, developers, and operators to future-proof concessions programs—from RFP strategy to digital activation.

The AI shopping wave isn’t coming. It’s already taxiing to the gate.

Want to talk about how AI can drive airport retail revenue? Let’s connect.