It will be interesting to see if more schools in South Korea turn towards AI robots instead of hiring foreign English teachers:
Seoul Education Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon speaks during a press briefing held at the Seoul Metropolitan Education Office of Education in central Seoul, Wednesday. (Yonhap)
Robots powered by artificial intelligence will aid English education in five elementary and middle schools in Seoul starting in March 2024, the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education said Wednesday.
The English tutoring robots will aid students in brushing up their English language knowledge, conversation skills and pronunciation. For students struggling academically, the robots will provide a customized education service, enabling them to learn the language at their own pace.
The education office also said it would provide schools with a chatbot app, which allows users to practice conversations via mobile phones. The app enables students to engage in conversations and discussions with the robot based on a topic selected by the user.
This is something that people can expect to see more of in Korea as the technology continues to improve:
Dilly, a self-driving delivery robot developed by food delivery service Baemin’s operator Woowa Brothers, crosses a road while en route to deliver food on Teheran-ro in southern Seoul’s Gangnam District, which has been specially designated for robot delivery, Nov. 7. Courtesy of Woowa Brothers
Robots are gradually becoming part of daily life in Korea, as the country’s recent amendment to the act governing the use of robots has allowed outdoor autonomous robots to drive on sidewalks for delivery, patrols and other purposes.
This change has opened new avenues for related industries, as various advantages are expected for companies utilizing robots such as labor cost reduction, increased efficiency in last-mile delivery and improvement in safety, industry officials and experts said Thursday.
On Nov. 17, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the National Police Agency implemented the revised Act on Development and Supply of Intelligent Robots. Previously, robots were not permitted to operate on sidewalks, but the revised law allows for new businesses to utilize robot delivery and patrols in outdoor environments.
These outdoor self-driving robots are required to comply with the Road Traffic Act, just like pedestrians. Jaywalking or walking on roadways is illegal, and operators of these robots who violate the regulations will be fined 30,000 won ($23). Additionally, businesses seeking to use outdoor autonomous driving robots are obliged to have insurance coverage.
Seoul city hires robot official A robot official passes through a security gate at Seoul City Hall on Nov. 22, 2022. The city employed the robot official for the first time to deliver documents and guide visitors earlier in the day. (Yonhap)
Robots at CJ logistics center An automated guided vehicle (AGV) moves to transport products on a fixed route at a CJ Logistics smart fulfillment center in Gunpo, Gyeonggi Province, on July 17, 2022. (Yonhap)
Int’l food fair This photo shows a robot that can cook noodle dishes at Seoul Food 2022, an international fair under way at the KINTEX convention center in Goyang, just northwest of Seoul, on June 7, 2022. (Yonhap)
This photo, provided by LG Electronics Inc. on Jan. 23, 2022, shows its CLOi robot on pilot service at a subway station in the southeastern city of Daegu.
SK Telecom’s serving bot This photo provided by SK Telecom Co. on June 27, 2021, shows the company’s artificial intelligence (AI) powered serving bot, Servinggo, at Hotel Inter-Burgo in Daegu, 302 kilometers southeast of Seoul. SK Telecom said 10 serving bots will go into service in August at the hotel. (Yonhap)
Food delivery robot at apartment complex This photo, provided by Woowa Brothers Corp., the operator of South Korea’s biggest delivery app, Baedal Minjok, known as Baemin, shows the company’s food delivery robot Delidrive. The robot will be put into service between an apartment complex and nearby restaurants in Suwon, south of Seoul, with residents there able to order food via the app. (Yonhap)
At the Gwacheon Science Museum. In the future section. Who the f would design a robot with mammaries unless it is a sexbot? They dont nurse baby smartphones or something. All the humanoid robots here are gendered female. Yay for male gaze in a childrens museum. pic.twitter.com/K4ro0WOewH
Here is what is coming up next for the $15 minimum wage crowd, restaurant automation:
Customers wait for LG Electronics’ CLOi Chefbot to cook noodles at a VIPS restaurant in western Seoul, Nov. 22. / Courtesy of LG Electronics
The food and beverage industry here has seen an increasing use of robots to serve food and beverages and even complete basic tasks such as making noodles in less than a minute.
Industry officials said Sunday that more robots will be used in restaurants with the development of robotic technologies and soaring demand to utilize robots for routine and repetitive tasks, replacing human employees.
LG Electronics said it has deployed a robot chef called the CLOi Chefbot to a Seoul branch of VIPS restaurant in cooperation with the family restaurant chain operator CJ Foodville.
