SkyTeam Partners with Plug and Play to Lead Innovation

Global airline alliance, SkyTeam, has entered into an innovation partnership with Plug and Play Tech Center, the world's largest corporate innovation platform and the most active VC worldwide with headquarters in Silicon Valley, to become the leading alliance in fostering a culture of collaboration, co-innovation, and co-creation across their member airlines. The primary goal of this partnership is to develop new value propositions and enhance the travel experience of their members' customers. 

The joint partnership was officially announced at Plug and Play Vienna's EXPO on June 1, 2023, in the AirportCity Space at the Vienna International Airport, where one of Plug and Play's Travel & Hospitality programs is based and where SkyTeam will become an official partner. The EXPO is the biggest event of the year, concluding the 12-month-long corporate innovation program by celebrating the successes of corporate partners collaborating with startups. In general, the corporate innovation program in Vienna is designed to connect major industry corporations to startups and scale-ups to foster their digital transformation and various innovation initiatives.

"SkyTeam believes that Plug and Play is an excellent partner to collaborate with to achieve our strategic and innovation goals," said Patrick Roux, CEO of SkyTeam. "Through Plug and Play, we will gain access to a global startup ecosystem which will result in targeted dealflow opportunities for pilot projects and support with collaborative due diligence." 

Plug and Play will help SkyTeam achieve its innovation vision and strategic goals for 2027. By implementing the open innovation approach, SkyTeam will not only work with its members but also with industry-leading partners such as startups, academia, and other relevant organizations. 

Plug and Play runs accelerator programs in over 20 industries worldwide. SkyTeam will join the Plug and Play Travel and Hospitality program in Vienna. The program focuses specifically on the aviation industry, connecting major airports, airlines, and other industry stakeholders worldwide, making it the biggest corporate aviation innovation platform. Throughout the program, SkyTeam will work one-on-one with entrepreneurs to initiate pilot projects and focus especially on seamless customer experience solutions.

"We are excited to have one of the largest airline alliances join our global Travel and Hospitality platform. Alliances play a crucial role in the ecosystem since they act as a multiplier and have the ability to accelerate innovation for the entire airline industry," said Nik Munaretto from Plug and Play Vienna. Together with other program partners such as Vienna International Airport, Fraport, Aeroporti di Roma, JetBlue Ventures, Changi Airport, and Airbus, exchanges will take place on best practices, new technologies, and new ideas.