HONG KONG & PASADENA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--ObEN Inc., the artificial intelligence (AI) company that is building a decentralized AI platform for intelligent avatars, today announced the premiere of the first-ever Personal AI (PAI) art docent experience at the museum-retail space Shanghai K11 Art Mall. Bearing the likeness and voice of K11 Founder Adrian Cheng, the AI concierge will guide visitors through K11 Art Museum’s new duo exhibit featuring works from American ceramic artist Betty Woodman and acclaimed Chinese painter Zhao Yang.
“This exhibit introduces visitors to an experience that brings together art and technology in an entirely new and unique dimension,” said Adrian Cheng, founder of K11. “Together with ObEN, we are disrupting the way people navigate the exhibit experience, connecting with them on a deeper, more intimate level and fostering a closer connection between audience, curatorial expression, and artist through technology. We look forward to expanding this immersive experience to other areas within the K11 ecosystem.”
The brainchild of entrepreneur and business innovator Adrian Cheng, K11 is a pioneering multi-faceted brand rooted in culture and interconnected by three core values: art, nature, and people. The K11 Art Mall, featuring flagship locations in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Wuhan, is the world’s first museum-retail experience. Consistent with its spirit of innovation, K11 continually seeks and attracts technology partners that help elevate the immersive experience for visitors to its Art Malls, office towers K11 Atelier, and other K11 entities.
The new exhibit is a unique convergence of art and technology, cultures and mediums. From now until June 17, 2018, visitors will be individually guided through the exhibit by Cheng’s PAI, from a smart device bearing an artificial intelligence-based avatar. The first experience of its kind, the PAI concierge will provide visitors with a customized experience, with Cheng’s PAI providing details about select works on display, artist history, and exhibit development.
“This exhibit at K11 showcases the transformative impact PAI can have on industries, including retail and hospitality – providing visitors with more engaging and personalized experiences,” said Nikhil Jain, CEO and co-founder of ObEN. “We are thrilled to partner with K11 to create experiences that complement their unique conglomeration of art, entertainment, and retail.”
The PAI art concierge is powered by ObEN’s Personal AI technology. On the consumer front, the technology allows users to easily create a 3D avatar that looks, sounds, and behaves like them with just one selfie and a brief voice recording from their smartphone. Secured and authenticated on the Project PAI blockchain, ObEN’s PAI provides unprecedented levels of security, data control, and utility. In addition to K11, ObEN also works with leading organizations like S.M. Entertainment, with whom they have a joint venture – AI Stars, the first agency for celebrity Personal AI’s.
ObEN’s Personal AI technology will be available in mid-2018. Learn more at projectpai.com.
About K11 and K11 Investment
K11 was founded in 2008 by entrepreneur and business innovator Adrian Cheng. The pioneering multi-faceted brand is rooted in culture and interconnected by three core values: art, nature, and people. Its ecosystem of business, cultural, technological, and charitable enterprises is a manifestation of the founder's constant search for ways to disrupt stagnant industries and foster cross-cultural dialogues. It spans a wide array of touchpoints: the world’s first museum-retail concept, K11 Art Malls; its state-of-the-art office spaces, K11 Ateliers; its open education platform, K11 Kulture Academy; the curated K11 Design Stores; the Terrarium-inspired transformative retail space K11 Natural; and K11 Art Foundation, China’s first private not-for-profit to incubate Chinese artists and curators. By 2023 the brand will have gained a footprint in 29 projects in nine cities across Greater China.
K11 Investment is the investment arm of New World Development – a Hong Kong-based conglomerate of which Cheng is Executive Vice-chairman and General Manager. Its businesses range from real estate and retail to hospitality. Among K11 Investment’s growing portfolio is DayDayCook, China’s most successful online cooking channel, with over 200 million monthly views. DayDayCook’s first experiential studio opened in Shanghai K11 Art Mall in December 2017. In January 2018, K11 Investment made a US$10 million strategic investment in ObEN to continue the growth of its AI technology.
About ObEN
ObEN is an artificial intelligence (AI) company that is building a decentralized AI platform for intelligent avatars, enabling never before possible social and virtual interactions. The company’s technology allows users to create intelligent 3D avatars that look, sound, and behave like them. Deployed on the Project PAI blockchain, ObEN’s Personal AI (PAI) technology enables users to create, use, and manage their own PAI on a secure, decentralized platform. Founded in 2014, ObEN is a K11, Tencent, Softbank Ventures Korea, and HTC Vive X portfolio company and is located at Idealab in Pasadena, California. To learn more about ObEN, please visit oben.com.
