Embodied intelligence, retail eye more links

A physical retail operating system designed to fill a gap in the commercial application of embodied intelligence was launched, aiming to expand the model for wider use across the country and facilitate China's efforts to integrate artificial intelligence with consumption.

The new system, formally known as SenseMart OS, connects enterprises along the industrial chain — including robot makers, unmanned retail operators and franchise partners — to create a complete business ecosystem covering manufacturers, systems and physical stores.

Developed by SenseMart, the smart retail ecosystem company under Chinese AI company SenseTime, the new operating system is now in operation in more than 20 stores in cities nationwide.

The application of embodied intelligence in offline retail scenarios requires the ability to maneuver in real-world/real-time environments, execute actions accordingly and provide feedback, said Xu Li, chairman and CEO of SenseTime, during the recent launch ceremony of the OS.

"All of these require teams to understand both technology and business operations to apply the technology in specific scenarios, making retail an important area for (embodied) intelligence's application in the physical world," said Xu.

"Retail scenarios offer embodied intelligence a place to grow, and embodied intelligence creates a new world for retail in return," said Huang Di, chairman and CEO of SenseMart, adding that retail is the best playground in the physical world for applying and refining embodied intelligence.

"The demand in retail is real and rooted in everyday life, requiring technologies that are not only available, but also operated smoothly and reliably," Huang said.

Huang added that the clear and diversified tasks in retail scenarios allow embodied intelligence to accumulate real-world experience and gradually expand its boundaries of application. In the meantime, these real-world applications can be both experienced by consumers and utilized by business operators.

As the first embodied retail brand in China to launch a profitable model for a single store, SenseMart Go is now available in more than 20 stores in cities including Shanghai; Hefei, Anhui province; Shenzhen, Guangdong province; Qingdao, Shandong province; and Yancheng, Jiangsu province, said SenseTime.

The application scenarios cover shopping malls, industrial parks, office buildings, sports and cultural events, festivals, tourist areas and public city spaces among others.

Yi Shuai, co-founder and chief scientist of SenseMart, said progress has been made as planned.

"Dozens of stores, either self-operated or partner-operated, were opened in the four months from May through September. We plan to accelerate store openings in the coming three months," said Yi.

"Many of our partners operating one-person companies came up with outstanding creativity and ideas, which helped improve the performance of the stores. By the end of this year, there might be a hundred such stores, and the number would be greater if we take into account those that are partner-operated," Yi said.

The launch of the embodied intelligence OS is in line with the nation's call for accelerating the integration of AI with consumption, said Yang Xiaojie, director of Xuhui district's commission of commerce in Shanghai.

"Against such a backdrop, Shanghai is actively building clusters combining AI and consumption, promoting AI's development toward offline applications, and making it a new driving force in the city's commercial sector," said Yang, adding that there are abundant real-world consumption scenarios available in Xuhui for such applications.

wang_ying@chinadaily.com.cn