EasyDialog Provides 'easyPhone,' the First Full-Stack Generative AI-Powered Customer Service System to a Municipality, Ichinoseki City, Iwate Prefecture

EasyDialog LLC (Headquarters: Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture, Representative: Christoph Johannes Neumann) announced today that it has provided its generative AI-powered telephone response system 'easyPhone' to Ichinoseki City, Iwate Prefecture, and the system began operation as the city's 'customer service system (AI phone)' on March 16, 2026. This system is designed for generative AI to respond to telephone inquiries from citizens in a natural conversational format, aiming to both improve citizen services and streamline the work of municipal staff. This marks the first instance in Japan of a municipality introducing a full-stack generative AI telephone response system for its citizens. Furthermore, it is the first system introduced in Japan for municipal telephone response that centers on RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) rather than primarily relying on FAQ registration, making it a unique and unparalleled initiative at present. Background At municipal service counters, staff must handle telephone inquiries concurrently with in-person visitors. This has led to challenges in operational efficiency, such as difficulty in answering calls during peak hours and staff having to interrupt their work. To address these issues, Ichinoseki City has introduced a generative AI-powered automated telephone response system to improve citizen convenience and streamline administrative operations. System Overview Service Name: easyPhone Operation Start Date: March 16, 2026 Phone Number: 050-1792-9217 Supported Inquiries (24-hour service) Inquiries regarding My Number Cards Procedures for resident transfers (in/out) Issuance of resident certificates, family register certificates, etc. Seal registration Inquiries regarding family registers How to Use By calling the dedicated phone number and asking questions as in a normal conversation, the AI will understand the content and provide answers. If the AI cannot handle the inquiry, it will confirm contact information, and a staff member will call back. Features of easyPhone 1. Natural Conversational Response by Generative AI easyPhone utilizes generative AI powered by RAG to understand the intent of citizens' questions and respond in a natural conversational format. Unlike traditional IVR or FAQ-based systems, it allows for flexible dialogue. Furthermore, FAQs are managed through a dedicated interface and appropriately integrated into the conversation. This ensures both natural dialogue and the accuracy of administrative information, clearly differentiating it from conventional FAQ-based, context-less telephone systems. 2. Designed for Municipalities with Practical Operation in Mind Leveraging EasyDialog's expertise in conversational AI development and close collaboration with Ichinoseki City, a practical dialogue design optimized for municipal operations has been achieved. Moreover, this system was developed through continuous and iterative collaboration with Ichinoseki City's Citizen Affairs Division. By adopting an agile development approach that directly incorporates feedback from the field, the system boasts high practicality aligned with actual workflows. 3. AI Architecture Based on Patented Technology easyPhone achieves both high response accuracy and stable operation through a unique architecture built upon multiple patented technologies held by EasyDialog. 4. Administrator Dashboard An administrative dashboard is provided to analyze inquiry content and improve responses, enabling continuous service enhancement. Ichinoseki City's Initiatives in AI Utilization Ichinoseki City has been actively promoting initiatives utilizing generative AI, and has now introduced generative AI telephone response as its 'third phase,' following: Fiscal Year 2023: AI Chatbot Fiscal Year 2024: Audio Guidance System This represents an advanced initiative as a case of full-scale utilization of generative AI in municipal telephone customer service. Comment from Christoph Neumann, Representative Partner of EasyDialog LLC 'We are extremely pleased to have realized Japan's first generative AI telephone service for municipalities through close cooperation with Ichinoseki City. We will continue to provide conversational AI solutions that support the DX of local governments.' Future Developments For the time being, this system will undergo verification operation via a dedicated phone line. After continuous improvements, expansion to departments other than the Citizen Affairs Division is envisioned, with future plans to utilize it for in-person dialogue support at service counters. EasyDialog aims to use this initiative as a model case for deployment to municipalities across Japan.