Situation
Airlines manage large, complex travel and expense (T&E) ecosystems where strong compliance is essential for financial accuracy, regulatory readiness, and operational efficiency. Our client, a major U.S. airline, wanted to modernize its T&E compliance processes using AI.
AI-powered agents automate audits, and give finance teams real-time visibility into the airline’s T&E compliance.
Their existing audit approach relied heavily on manual, rule‑based checks. For example, flight crew expenses were audited manually, hotel selections were checked against approved layover lists, and per‑diem overages required individual review. These manual checks resulted in limited exception coverage, slow processing times, and inconsistent detection of potential anomalies.
Action
We modernized the airline’s T&E compliance processes using a Generative AI–powered multi‑agent framework. The solution included a financial expert agent working alongside policy‑reasoning and exception‑detection agents to deliver a more intelligent and scalable audit process.
The GenAI agents identified compliance issues by uncovering implicit patterns in the data, while the financial agent generated new rule suggestions based on observed exceptions. Unstructured policy documents were converted into machine‑readable rules, and machine learning models classified and reviewed expenses at scale.
Self‑service dashboards, enhanced with GenAI Copilot–powered analytics, provided visibility into anomalies and spending trends. Early‑warning alerts flagged potential violations before reimbursements were processed.
The multi‑agent framework was built on the Databricks Lakehouse. Agents translated complex T&E policies into executable SQL, applied reasoning‑based checks, and continuously analyzed transactions in real time.
By adopting this AI‑driven audit solution, the airline improved accuracy, uncovered new patterns of noncompliance, and significantly reduced the time and effort required for T&E auditing. To learn more, read the blog here.
Results
- Improved audit accuracy by analyzing every transaction and uncovering hidden patterns of noncompliance.
- Accelerated processing times through automated classification, early alerts, and reduced manual review.
- Compliance policies stay current and adaptive with dynamic rule generation derived from unstructured documents and emerging behaviors.
- Enhanced visibility and control through self service dashboards that uncover anomalies, trends, and employee level insights.
The AI‑driven audit solution reduced auditing T&E efforts.
Financial and policy agents contributed to an intelligent and scalable audit process.
Visibility was enhanced through self service dashboards that show anomalies, trends, and insights.
-
256K
Exception transactions flagged (~12% of total transactions) -
-
72%
Exceptions detected using GenAI and AI/ML models -
-
50%
Gain in effort efficiency and reduction in audit processing time