Story Highlights

Seeing the old from new perspectives

Central Market has a history of more than 170 years and has witnessed the changes of Central. To present the long history of the landmark and the surrounding neighbourhood engagingly, technology can help. Professional guides guide most tours, but they can't work 24x7. Chinachem Group has introduced Novelte Robotics's innovative robot-guided tour solution through the accelerator programme. 

"Our robot GB1 offers a new experience for those who want to learn about the history of Central Market and the neighbourhood," says Albert Lam, Co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer of Novelte Robotics. "Not only is it attractive to children and young people, but it can also help save costs by reducing staffing efforts. Most importantly, our solution brings the history of Central Market to life with our interactive multimedia experiences to create an engaging, interesting story." 

Central Market history made more engaging

Since the launch of GB1, it has been mainly used by museums on the mainland. Chinachem group would like to give Albert's team a try in Hong Kong by introducing GB1 to Central Market. This participation aims to allow the audience to go through history through the eyes of GB1, which Lam says is in line with the mission of Novelte Robotics – using robots to contribute to the community. 

"There's a lot of foot traffic throughout Central Market indeed, far more than most museums in mainland China. Apart from worrying that GB1 would compete with visitors for walking space, we must also think about how to avoid staircases," he notes. GBI does not climb up or go down the stairs by design for safety reasons. Chinachem Group and HKSTP have constantly discussed with Lam's team setting up a designated zone for GBI to operate safely in the venue and serve visitors.