Skift Global Forum Preview: Virgin Atlantic’s CEO on Where AI Belongs and Where People Win

Skift Take Corneel Koster is betting Virgin Atlantic wins on what people feel, the sense of belonging a great crew creates, in an era where AI mediates the booking. He's backing that bet with premium cabins and scenario-planning discipline. We'll press him on it at Skift Global Forum this September. Virgin Atlantic has spent four decades trading scale for personality, and its CEO, Corneel Koster, who speaks at Skift Global Forum, September 22–24, 2026, argues that human connection is the airline’s durable advantage as technology reshapes how travelers choose. Ahead of his session in New York City, Koster lays out the thinking driving his approach. People and Experience Are the Differentiators Skift: The customer journey keeps getting longer and more fragmented. How has your thinking changed about traveler choice and how your company curates products and offerings? Corneel: Customers don’t just compare airlines with airlines, they compare their experience with the best experience they’ve had anywhere. They want personalization and frictionless integrated journeys, on their terms and we design those journeys with extra flair. However, the real differentiation is in the human sparkle, that vibrant connection our customers make with our awesome teams in the air and on the ground. Feeling seen, cared for, looked after in style and with real personality is what our customers remember and it’s that sense of belonging that creates real advocacy. Skift: As AI starts deciding who gets recommended and who doesn’t, what have you had to do differently to earn a spot in that recommendation? Corneel: At Virgin Atlantic, we love innovating for our customers. It is in our DNA. Richard Branson founded Virgin Atlantic 42 years ago, pioneering a new approach to air travel which challenged the status quo, revolutionized the customer experience, delivered exceptional service, and brought much-needed competition to the skies. Offering something unique, different and exciting. Today we stay true to our challenger spirit and heritage, with a dash of mischief. What we might lack in scale, we make up for in mindset, it’s an advantage. We embrace the tremendous possibilities of technology and AI, combined with our distinctive style in physical design of spaces and products, to elevate the customer experience. But it is our people who truly create the difference, bring it all together in style, turning a journey into lasting memories. Leveraging AI smartly, while relying on human judgement where it truly matters and showing that unmistakable Virgin love will keep us ahead. Skift: What’s a behavior shift you’re seeing in your own data right now that would surprise people outside your company? Corneel: Not that surprising, but important to reinforce is the growth in demand for a premium experience – from onboard seating and amenities to our Clubhouses and route networks. We are doubling down on delivering for our customers with a 30% increase in Upper Class and Premium seating with upcoming Airbus A330neo deliveries, from the end of the year, followed by a full cabin refit and more premium configuration of our Boeing 787-9s, to refreshing our Clubhouses. We accelerated the delivery of Starlink across our Airbus A350 fleet (we completed 12 aircraft in just over a month, 5 months ahead of schedule). We are receiving exceptional feedback from our customers traveling on these aircraft during the busy summer period. We look forward to implementing on our 787s in the coming months and completing fleet wide implementation by early next year. The Frameworks Underneath Skift: What’s one strategy or playbook you’ve had to actually rewrite this year, and what forced the change? Corneel: No day is the same in aviation, and at Virgin Atlantic, we know how to navigate uncertainty. It’s important to have a clear strategy, execute well, yet roll with the punches and respond fast to whatever the world throws at us, maximizing opportunities and mitigating threats. One of our strengths is our ability to act fast, be nimble and make sure we are prepared for all eventualities. Unexpected geopolitical disruption this year made us make short term changes to our network and reoptimize inventory management and pricing, actively supported by AI, when all historic patterns turned invalid. At Virgin Atlantic we move fast and keep adapting to whatever the world throws at us. Skift: The pace of change is only increasing. When you’re trying to make a decision, what’s the actual test or rule you use? Corneel: Our customers are at the heart of everything we do at Virgin Atlantic, and our people lead with heart, humor and professionalism. Innovating for our customers and being brave, bold and creative is what keeps us true to our challenger spirit. It guides every decision we make. In a VUCA world, we use sensitivity analyses and scenario planning for most decisions so we truly understand the range of outcome and we ensure we fare well, and so do our customers, in all scenarios. Skift: How are you thinking about how the customer relationship has evolved, and what companies need to do to maintain it? Corneel: Listening to feedback and creating an accessible, rewarding loyalty program provides long-term value for our customers. This year in Flying Club, we’ve introduced additional program benefits including High Five Rewards to reward long-term customer loyalty including members who have flown in five different years with 12K Virgin Points. Over 34K members have been awarded to date. We also offered enhanced status match to British Airways Club members earlier this year. More than 10,000 people status matched with us! The Decisions This Session Resolves Human differentiation: whether the belonging and advocacy a great crew creates is a durable moat, or a feeling that gets harder to scale as the airline adds premium capacity. Premium investment: whether a 30% lift in Upper Class and Premium seating meets real demand, or bets ahead of it in a market where every carrier is chasing the top end. AI in the operation: where Koster draws the line between AI-supported decisions, like the inventory and pricing reoptimization that carried Virgin through this year’s disruption, and the human judgment he says wins the customer. Loyalty mechanics: whether tenure-based rewards and competitive status-matching are the right levers for a challenger to grow share against far larger loyalty ecosystems. Decision discipline: how scenario planning and sensitivity analysis hold up as a decision rule when historic patterns stop predicting anything, and what that means for a challenger’s appetite for risk. Hear from Corneel Koster alongside Accor’s Sébastien Bazin, Expedia Group’s Ariane Gorin, and Banyan Group’s Ho Ren Yung, live at Skift Global Forum, September 22–24 in New York.