An interactive humanoid robot called Pepper is being deployed by Eurostar to offer information on journeys from London St Pancras station.
Designed by SoftBank Robotics, it is claimed to be the first robot with the ability to recognise principal human emotions and adapt its own behaviour accordingly.
Eurostar has recruited Pepper to entertain and help customers by responding to questions or posing for a selfie on request.
Located in the departure lounge at the London terminus, Pepper will interact with passengers using an in-built tablet, where travellers will find an interactive station map, information about the on board experience, as well as destination tips for Paris, Brussels, Lille and Amsterdam.
Pepper will be located at St Pancras International for the rest of the year, with plans to re-locate to one of Eurostar’s other locations in 2019.
Eurostar head of digital Perrine Allain said: “We are always looking for new ways to innovate, and explore technologies that can help enhance the overall customer experience.
“Pepper offers a fun way for customers to find out more about their journey and destination, and we look forward to hearing the feedback from our customers so that we can continue to improve their experience.”
The robotic addition is one of a range of technological advances the high speed rail operator is using to enhance the customer experience.
Alexa skill will be introduced later this month with passengers able to link Alexa to their Eurostar account to track travel plans and find out the lowest available fare to Paris.