DENVER -- Face-to-face competition could be coming to an airport security checkpoint near you.
Clear, the private airport security screening service, expects to have completed the rollout of its fast-working facial identify pods by early April.
As of the second week of March, 70% of the more than 7.3 million members of the Clear Plus airport program were using the company's EnVe facial recognition pods, on which deployment began in November, said Kyle McLaughlin, Clear's executive vice president of aviation. The machines were up and running in 40 of the company's 59 airports.
Users of EnVe machines need only pause for a few seconds for their face to be verified biometrically against passport or driver's license images held in the Clear database. The company says the machines have sped up processing by a factor of five compared to its previous generation of identity verification pods, which rely on iris or fingerprint checks.
The EnVe machines are Clear's most substantial recent customer experience upgrade, but not the only one in the works.
A concierge service is also now on offer at six airports. And Clear has begun experimenting with automated entry gates in Greenville, S.C., and Oklahoma City, with a wider rollout targeted for later in the year. Those would replace the current manual ID checks of Clear members at the head of its cordoned-off lanes.
"It's part of our broader vision of a fully automated, frictionless identity," McLaughlin said. "We know customer experience is the No. 1 driver of retention."
The enhancements might also be viewed as timely.
Clear is an enrollment contractor for TSA PreCheck. And many flyers use PreCheck in concert with Clear to further expedite their airport screening.
But lots of flyers also view PreCheck as an alternative to Clear -- or at least enough of an expediter to make the pricier Clear membership less compelling.
That sentiment has the potential to increase as the TSA expands rollouts of its own Touchless Identity Solution program. The agency currently offers touchless PreCheck security lanes in 10 airports in partnership with Delta, United and Alaska. American has also announced its intent to participate.
PreCheck members who opt in with their airline are able to go hands-free through the checkpoint, pausing only briefly for a photo that is biometrically verified in a fashion not much different than the EnVe pods. Touchless ID screening takes an average of eight seconds, the TSA said, compared to the 18 to 20 seconds it takes in standard PreCheck lanes, where photos are still verified manually against a physical or digital ID.
Rollout of the TSA touchless alternative has moved slowly since its 2021 introduction in Detroit. Challenges have included funding constraints; political opposition to biometric deployments due to privacy concerns; and the coordination that is required between the TSA, airports and airlines.
McLaughlin said Clear's widespread availability -- there are 166 Clear lanes at airports across the country -- means that the PreCheck touchless option isn't a strong alternative for flyers.
"It's the predictability," he said of Clear's strengths. "It's the ability to show up at any of our 59 airports and know you're going to have the same experience no matter where you go."
But assuming the PreCheck touchless program eventually reaches more substantial scale, McLaughlin said travelers will still choose Clear due to its overall offering. The planned addition of automated entry gates will further improve the program, he said.
Meanwhile, flyers in Denver, Washington Dulles, Minneapolis, Cleveland, Orlando and San Juan already have the option of using the Ambassador Assist concierge service, in which an agent meets flyers at the airport door, helps with their luggage and guides them to the Clear lane or all the way to their gate.
McLaughlin said the service is most commonly used by senior citizens and travelers with small children. Flyers looking for an especially luxurious experience are another audience.
Ambassador Assist costs $49 for an escort through the Clear lane and between $99 and $149 for escorts to the gate.
The offering will be extended to more airports throughout this year.
Correction: As of the second week of March, 70% of the more than 7.3 million members of the Clear Plus airport program were using Clear’s EnVe facial recognition pods. An earlier version of this article incorrectly said that 70% of its total membership were using the EnVe pods.