Startups test airport tech with PIT’s xBridge program

Airport technology is advancing through Pittsburgh International Airport’s xBridge project, a program launched in 2021 to test automation, AI and robotics for airports. Technologies successfully piloted through xBridge will debut at the airport in 2025 along with the $1.5 billion expansion of Pittsburgh’s (PIT) passenger and cargo terminals , Cole Wolfson , xBridge director, told Air Cargo Next. [caption id="attachment_57139689" align="alignleft" width="300"] A design of Pittsburgh International Airport's new cargo terminal to become operational in early 2025. (Courtesy/Pittsburgh International Airport)[/caption] The program’s funding comes from PIT’s operating budget, though the Allegheny County Airport Authority (ACAA) declined to disclose the amount. “X Bridge is not focused on just bringing new technologies to PIT but is also [focused] on introducing new technologies to the industry as a whole,” Wolfson said. XBridge projects move opposite the way typical corporate innovation programs operate , Wolfson said. “The xBridge team does not solicit needs from airport staff and then look for technology solutions,” he said. “Instead, xBridge offers the airport’s resources — like expansive indoor spaces, human interactivity on a large scale, public facilities that are both dynamic and secure, and open-minded staff — to the national technology startup community.” Essentially, PIT has an open-door policy for tech startups looking to test new technologies in a real-world operating environment, Wolfson said. “An airport is a unique environment because so many industries have presences there: logistics, customer service, safety, sustainability , retail, food and beverage , [and] mobility,” he said. Additionally, Pittsburgh is home to Carnegie Mellon University , a leading school in robotics, computer science, AI and machine learning. “Technologies and companies that emerge from the university are resources that the aviation industry should leverage to stay on the front edge of innovation,” Wolfson said. Tech companies at xBridge Salt Lake City-based Sarcos Technology and Robotics partnered in 2021 with xBridge, testing its robotics technology that mimics human functions to optimize ground handling operations and reduce worker injury, according to the ACAA. [caption id="attachment_57139915" align="alignleft" width="300"] Sarcos Technology and Robotics' Guardian XM robotic arm that can be used for indoor and outdoor applications. (Courtesy/Allegheny County Airport Authority)[/caption] The United States Air Force in September awarded Sarcos $13.8 million for its AI and machine learning software, according to a release from Sarcos. “Sarcos is designing a wide range of applications for the aviation industry, ranging from luggage handling to ground-servicing operations such as refueling and water services,” according to the ACAA. Other startups testing technologies through xBr i dge include: Albuquerque, N.M.-based BioFlyte , which designed a bio-aerosol surveillance sensor that can, in fewer than five minutes, detect and identify airborne bioterrorism threats; Baltimore-based AlgenAir , which is testing its first commercial-sized aerium to reduce indoor air pollution, an installation that “has the photosynthetic capacity of over 5,000 plants. The algae grown in this system is spirulina. It can be recycled in downstream applications such as composting, nutrition, pigments, bioplastics [and] biofuels,” according to the ACAA; and Pittsburgh-based Mapless AI , which is developing and testing autonomous vehicles for passengers and ground operations. “The physical space is nice-to-have, but isn’t a must-have,” Wolfson said. “The critical component of the xBridge program is the means to test technologies in the physical space of a working airport. This is where early technologies that have been proven out in a controlled environment meet the harsh reality of a real-world operating environment.”

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