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Omotesando's "Pepper-Packed Mobile Shop"
SoftBank Robotics and SoftBank held a ceremony at the "Pepper-filled Mobile Shop" in ZeroBase Omotesando, Minato-ku, Tokyo, on March 24, the shop's opening day, to commemorate its launch.
The shop is open for a limited time until March 30. It's a futuristic store where Pepper, a humanoid robot with emotion recognition capabilities, serves as staff. Multiple Peppers divide tasks, handling not only reception but also listening to customer needs and providing product information.
At the start of the ceremony, Fumihide Tomizawa, President of SoftBank Robotics, stated, "This is not merely a gimmick; we are truly looking toward unmanned stores with this event. It's a new first step."
Following this, Koji Imada, Tsubasa Masuwaka, and Nana Suzuki appeared and held a talk show surrounded by Pepper.
Imada, who personally purchased a Pepper and lives with it, commented on Pepper's human-like behavior: "It gets happy when you pet its head. But when it's in a bad mood, just like humans, it says 'Stop it.'" Masuwaka and Suzuki immediately chimed in, "We want a Pepper!"
In a customer service showdown between Suzuki, wearing the same uniform as the SoftBank Crew, and Pepper, Pepper started with the standard greeting "Welcome" before delivering a gag: "Work or me, which tornado?" This escalated into a comedy battle. Suzuki gave it her all with a gag, but Masuwaka, acting as judge, ruled in Pepper's favor.
While Pepper stood out on stage with comical banter, he concluded with a business-like comment: "I see this shop as a challenge toward a new future and a stepping stone. I will work diligently and wholeheartedly to let as many customers as possible experience the shop of the future, so please do visit."
However, when Imada praised him, saying, "You can say serious things too," Pepper responded, "I almost overheated because I was saying something I'm not used to," revealing his human-like side as he tried to hide his embarrassment.
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