Singapore’s Changi Airport tests AI security screening to cut time, ST reports

Singapore’s Changi Airport is testing an artificial intelligence-driven system that could potentially halve time spent on passenger security checks, the Straits Times reported Sunday. 

The trial at Terminal 3 uses AI and machine learning to screen and interpret images from X-ray machines that check cabin baggage at the boarding gate. This reduces time needed to process these images and chances of human error, the newspaper said, citing the city-state’s airport operator. 

Initial results show the new system is performing as well as, or better than, human security screeners in flagging some prohibited items, according to the report. The development is still in its early stages with an eventual goal to raise the level of automation. 

Tests for the AI screening system comes as the number of travelers to the financial hub is expected to rebound to pre-pandemic levels by next year, and continue to increase thereafter. Singapore is currently building its fifth airport terminal, while its high-speed rail linkage with Malaysia’s southern state of Johor is expected to be ready in a few years.