Tachikoma from the anime "Ghost in the Shell" will serve customers in actual stores!　Tachikoma-based Communication Robot Implementation Experiment Begins

A demonstration experiment of a service in which Tachikoma, a popular character from the anime "Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex," will actually serve customers will begin.

Production I.G. Corporation, in cooperation with karakuri products, Inc., will start a demonstration experiment of a customer service service using Tachikoma, a multi-legged tank equipped with AI that appears in the anime "Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex.

This project is part of the "Ghost in the Shell S.A.C. 1/2 Size Tachikoma Realization Project," in which sponsor companies are working on the social implementation of communication robots based on Tachikoma. The service will be offered as part of the "Tachikoma Realize Project," in which users will be able to receive products they have pre-ordered through the "Virtual Agent Tachikoma" smartphone app, which will be distributed by karakuri products from December 16, 2012, through real agents in stores.
By synchronizing the application with the real agent Tachikoma in the store, users can meet their own Tachikoma in the real world, and the Tachikoma's communication skills will be improved according to users' store visit information and purchasing behavior.

The project is part of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry's "Robot Introduction Demonstration Project" for fiscal year 2008, and the findings and results of the project will be used for social implementation of robots in the non-manufacturing sector through the Ministry.
Through this project, Production I.G. and karakuri products aim to enhance the infrastructure for robots that can provide customer service and information services in commercial and retail facilities. The company also aims to create new added value that appeals to anime fans in Japan and abroad, such as personalized customer service by animated characters.

More details can be found on the official I.G Store website ( # ).

Please refer to the next page for the project outline and other information.