Four JR Yamanote Line stations (Shinagawa, Shibuya, Ikebukuro and Akihabara) have installed an AI avatar guide, AI Sakura-san, to assist passengers accessing the stations.

AI Sakura-san is artificial intelligence (AI) avatar customer service system developed by tifana.com. It has been installed on 1 July 2022 to expand its services with inbound support and remote non-face-to-face customer service.

In place of station staff, AI Sakura-san provides information on facilities or transfers within the station and the surrounding area. Users can find this AI avatar near the ticket gate and the ticket counter at each designated station.

Operating at the ticket gates, AI Sakura-san allows station staff to remotely guide users for intricate questions that it cannot handle, such as IC card payments, via video call.
In addition, it can simultaneously translate and show the conversation on-screen during the video call to ensure smooth customer support for foreign travellers. Supported languages are English, Chinese and Korean.

It even has Japanese subtitles available for the hearing impaired.

◆Operational Period
1 Jul (Fri) 2022 – 31 Dec (Sun) 2023
*Basic operating hours vary from station to station

◆Operating Location
Shinagawa, Shibuya, Ikebukuro and Akihabara stations on the JR Yamanote Line

Also see:
New Osaka station to get world’s first mobile platform doors in spring 2023

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