Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE:DAL) CEO Ed Bastian has a message for the AI agents knocking on Delta's door: we see you, and we're watching. In an interview with Bloomberg on Thursday, Bastian laid out the company's approach to AI agents, which he says will differ from its competitors, while sketching the "tremendous opportunity" AI presents for the airline sector.

A 'Nuanced' Welcome for AI Agents

Asked about his approach to AI in the airline sector and the returns on investments into developing and implementing the technology, Bastian was candid about where things stand. "I don't think this is necessarily the right time to be asking where are the returns, but it's the right question that we have to be mindful of in order to govern how deep into this you want to get," he said, adding that the sector was still in the "learning" phase.

"We've been very cautious," Bastian said. "We stepped into it. We've spent a lot of time internally thinking about how the technology could afford change and there's tremendous opportunity for change in our industry." He then outlined that AI will increase productivity, but warned he was "not certain it's going to help us grow our business all that much."

On the agent question specifically, Bastian said user privacy was of paramount importance. "We're being careful. We can identify the agents when they approach us. We have the technology and the tools to do that," he said. "If they're there to look for information about airfare for you maybe, you may have sent them looking for us. We'll respond in kind."

But he reaffirmed the privacy line: "We understand who Lisa is, not who Lisa's agent is. And we'll only allow Lisa to do things that we know she wants to do, such as checking in for a flight."

"We're a bit more nuanced. We want to learn and understand what they're [AI agents] doing first. But I can tell you the volumes are relatively low. There's a lot of news flow about it. But the actual volumes we see are...still quite modest," Bastian said.

That stands in contrast to United Airlines Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL), which recently announced it was blocking unauthorized AI agents from booking flights, citing threats to customer privacy and compliance with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requirements.

Fares, the Iran War and a Fuel Shock That May Not Be Over

Bastian also defended high ticket fares, saying prices during the post-pandemic era were "flat to down" and that there was a bit of a "catch up" for airlines. Higher fares have not deterred demand. "We haven't seen the pushback. It's supply and demand," he said.

Turning to the ongoing Iran war, the CEO said companies had already increased costs to offset high oil prices. "Our [Delta] profits are down a little bit on a year-over-year basis, but we've largely held our margins at this point. And that's about, I think, all you can do with today's oil environment," he said.

But he warned of a potential hike in oil prices. "I think it's way too early to declare that the fuel shock is behind us. I mean, there's a risk it could go higher," Bastian said.

Musk Criticism and the Amazon Bet

In the same interview, Bastian defended the Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) partnership decision. "We know the Amazon Leo product is going to be a great product" and that it was "coming to the skies here relatively soon, over the next 18 months," he said.

That defense comes as Bastian fends off criticism from Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (NASDAQ:SPCX) CEO Elon Musk over the airline's refusal to provide Starlink internet on its flights.

Price Action: DAL shares were up 0.07% to $86.61 during overnight trading on Thursday, according to market data.