The awards spotlight leading airports in digital transformation, passenger experience, and sustainable operations—announced at Airports Innovate 2025 in Busan, Republic of Korea.
Busan, Republic Korea, 26 November 2025 – Airports Council International (ACI) World and Amadeus today announced the winners of the 2025 Technology Innovation Awards, recognizing the world’s most innovative airports. This year’s winners spotlight measurable advances in digital transformation, data-driven operations, identity-enabled self-service, and sustainable, climate-smart terminals.
Why this matters
Air travel will reach 9.8 billion passengers in 2025 (+3.7% YoY), with demand projected to rise to 17.2 billion by 2043. Airport technology and innovation are essential to unlock capacity, improve the passenger experience, and build operational resilience while advancing sustainability.
Winners of the Technology Innovation Awards 2025
- Best Innovation in Airport Passenger Related Processes: The Future Checked In: Biometric Enabled Self Baggage Drop at Kempegowda International Airport
- Best Innovation in Airport Operations and Installations Management: Smart Cleaning System: Redefining Facility Management through Innovation at Queen Alia International Airport
- Best Airport Innovation Leader (Individual): Pablo Lopez Loeches, Head of Ideation & Entrepreneurship at Aena
- Best Innovation: Airport on the Rise (5 million passengers or less): Bioclimatic Airport Building at Roland Garros Airport
ACI World Director General Justin Erbacci said: “The 2025 Technology Innovation Awards winners are about successful innovation implementation—solutions that run every day, in real airports, under real pressure. This year’s winners spotlight measurable advances in digital transformation, data-driven operations, identity-enabled self-service, and sustainable, climate-smart terminals. These are the types of innovation airports need now—meeting today’s passenger expectations while keeping pace with rapid growth in air travel.”
Amadeus EVP AirOps said Rudy Daniello said: “Many congratulations to this year’s airports recognized in the Technology Innovation Awards, from all of us at Amadeus. Our industry stands on the cusp of huge change as airports across the world digitally transform to offer a seamless travel experience. Now mature technologies like digital identity and biometrics are proven to drastically improve the experience of travel the door is open to even greater levels of innovation across the sector. The initiatives underlined how airports can work closely with their airline and government partners to ensure these transformative technologies are applied in a coordinated and integrated manner that delivers outstanding new passenger experiences while boosting overall capacity.”
The announcement was made at the Airports Innovate Gala Dinner. The event is curated as a premier global gathering that showcases the innovations transforming the future of airport travel. The conference is jointly organized by ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East, ACI EUROPE, and ACI World, and this year it is hosted by Korea Airports Corporation.
About ACI
Airports Council International (ACI), the trade association of the world’s airports, is a federated organization comprising ACI World, ACI Africa, ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East, ACI EUROPE, ACI Latin America and the Caribbean and ACI North America. In representing the best interests of airports during key phases of policy development, ACI makes a significant contribution toward ensuring a global air transport system that is safe, secure, efficient, and environmentally sustainable. As of January 2025, ACI serves 830 members, operating 2,181 airports in 170 countries.
About Amadeus
Amadeus makes the experience of travel better for everyone, everywhere by inspiring innovation, partnerships and responsibility to people, places and planet.
Our technology powers the travel and tourism industry. Inspiring more open ways of working. More connected ways of thinking, centered around the traveler. Our open platform connects the global travel and hospitality ecosystem. From startups to big industry players and governments too. Together, transforming how travel works.
We are working to make travel a force for social and environmental good. A collective responsibility to protect and improve the people and places we visit, ensuring travel continues to make positive contribution to our world.
We apply innovation to meet new needs, to solve real challenges. Our truly diverse global workforce, made up of 150 nationalities, is passionate about travel and technology.
We are an IBEX 35 company, listed on the Spanish Stock Exchange under AMS.MC. We have also been recognized by the Dow Jones Sustainability Index for the last 13 years.
Amadeus. It’s how travel works better.
Learn more about Amadeus at www.amadeus.com.
Editor notes
- Learn more about the ACI World-Amadeus Technology Innovation Awards.
- Learn more about the ACI Airports Innovate Event.