"Two Adult Tickets and Popcorn, Please" Just Say It [Unmanned Era⑪]

Creating the Brain of Kiosks
AI Specialist Company ElgenICT

Voice and Natural Language Processing Technology
Executing Commands Through Conversations

Market Boom Due to Increased Demand from COVID-19
Improving Convenience for Digital Vulnerable Groups Like Disabled and Elderly

AI smart kiosk by Elgen ICT installed at Lotte Cinema Gimpo Airport branch.
[Photo by Elgen ICT]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwak Min-jae] Lotte Cinema Gimpo Airport Branch in Gangseo-gu, Seoul. This location is equipped with 12 AI smart kiosks. On a weekday afternoon, visitors in front of the theater auditorium were ordering movie tickets by voice through the AI smart kiosks. They touched the tablet PC-sized kiosk screen and spoke their desired movie, time, and number of people, and the kiosk responded vocally while processing the order. At Lotte Cinema Gimpo Airport Branch, it is even possible to purchase snacks like popcorn and cola via voice, so the number of staff was minimal.

The kiosk is a representative item that accelerated the 'unmanned era' during the COVID-19 pandemic. Even as economic activities contracted, the kiosk market thrived. According to the Korea International Trade Association, the global market size for kiosk devices is expected to grow from $17.63 billion (about 21 trillion KRW) in 2020 to $33.99 billion (about 40 trillion KRW) by 2027. Since COVID-19, demand for contactless services has increased, driving rapid growth in kiosk technology.

People are ordering movie tickets using Elgen ICT AI smart kiosks at Lotte Cinema Gimpo Airport branch.
[Photo by Elgen ICT]

◆ AI Voice Recognition... Lowering Barriers for the Digitally Disadvantaged = Elgen ICT, an intelligent AI specialized company, is the brain behind kiosks. It supplies its proprietary AI platform, the AI smart kiosk solution I-SmartK, to kiosk manufacturers. It enables voice-guided navigation, ordering, and payment. Equipped with AI-based voice recognition and natural language processing (NLP) technology, it identifies keywords (entities) and intents in conversations and performs commands through STT (speech to text) and TTS (text to speech) interactions. Kim Nam-hyun, CEO of Elgen ICT, said, "More than 70% of our employees are AI researchers and developers, and we hold over five AI-related patents. Our AI voice recognition reliability exceeds 93%, leading the domestic AI smart kiosk solution sector."

According to CEO Kim, Elgen ICT’s AI smart kiosks are effective in improving inconveniences faced by digitally disadvantaged groups such as the disabled and elderly. Visually impaired users who cannot see the kiosk screen can check menus and place orders through voice conversations with the kiosk. For the past two years, Elgen ICT has collaborated with various companies to develop barrier-free kiosks that are easy to use for visually, hearing, and physically impaired individuals, as well as children and the elderly. These products feature braille displays, height adjustment recognizing user keys, and AI-powered voice recognition.

Of course, it also benefits store owners. CEO Kim said, "AI smart kiosks reduce about 10 steps compared to regular kiosks, cutting approximately 17 seconds per transaction. This reduces customer hassle and increases store turnover."

Namhyun Kim, CEO of Elgen ICT. [Photo by Elgen ICT]

◆ Commercialization of AI Chatbots... Goal to Develop Human Robots = CEO Kim served as an information and communications officer in the Naval Academy and chose a career in IT after leaving the military in his fifth year. After working in public project consulting, he founded his company in 2014. Within two years of founding, he succeeded in commercializing the AI chatbot 'Ttubot' (Daegu Touch Consultation Robot). Selected for a national project, he received a 1 billion KRW investment and spent the next three years developing the company’s solution, I-SmartK.

Elgen ICT counts companies like Lotte Data Communication, Transcosmos Korea (TCK), local governments, and public institutions among its clients. Notably, in Gwangju Metropolitan City, an AI preliminary feasibility exemption area, over 100 smart kiosks and smart vending machines have been installed at locations such as Songjeong Station and Geumnam-ro underground shopping mall, with an additional 2,000 units planned for installation this year. The company recorded 7.5 billion KRW in sales last year and expects to double that this year.

CEO Kim stated, "Based on AI technology, we plan to enter the human robot sector providing customized services within five years. Using our core technologies, we will develop i-Human (Elgen ICT’s AI counselor) by applying facial recognition and expression, behavioral recognition and expression technologies to evolve into specialized artificial humans."