Enhancing Station Customer Services Through New Technological Innovation

The JR East Group, under its group management vision 'Yusho 2034', as part of enhancing station services, will conduct a proof-of-concept experiment starting in July 2026 at Tachikawa and Omiya stations. This experiment aims to realize the 'Midori no Madoguchi AI-Powered Service (tentative name)', where generative AI will complement and support the tasks currently performed by station staff, such as organizing and confirming customer requests (including travel sections, dates, times, number of people, and discount eligibility).

By having equipment equipped with generative AI handle everything from confirming requests to issuing tickets, the company aims to go beyond the conventional norm of staff selling tickets and transform stations. This will allow station staff to focus on providing guidance and sales support to customers who require human judgment and detailed assistance.

Furthermore, through the QR coding of short-distance tickets and the further expansion of mobile shift and ticketless travel using transportation IC cards, the company will reorganize and integrate ticket machine spaces to make them more user-friendly, creating spaces that generate new value and redesigning stations.

1. What the new ticket purchase channel 'Midori no Madoguchi AI-Powered Service (tentative name)' aims to achieve

Under the group management vision 'Yusho 2034', towards the enhancement of station services, the company will progressively conduct proof-of-concept experiments for a generative AI service that comprehensively supports customers from organizing and confirming their requests (travel sections, dates, times, number of people, discount eligibility, etc.) to issuing tickets, while considering the unique rules of the railway business and diverse ticket systems.

In its initial phase, the 'Midori no Madoguchi AI-Powered Service (tentative name)' aims to make ticket purchasing clearer and smoother by having generative AI complement and support the tasks of organizing and confirming customer requests currently handled by staff at the Midori no Madoguchi counters. Through multilingual dialogue and guidance, it aims to create a new customer experience that is safe and easy for everyone to use, regardless of age or experience with the counter. In the future, equipment equipped with generative AI will achieve integrated handling from request confirmation to ticket issuance, allowing station staff to focus on providing guidance and sales support to customers who need human judgment and detailed assistance.

2. Overview of the proof-of-concept experiment

To realize the 'Midori no Madoguchi AI-Powered Service (tentative name)', a proof-of-concept experiment will be conducted in an actual station environment. The evaluation will assess whether the generative AI can appropriately organize and confirm customer requests, as well as the stability and usability of the system in a noisy station environment, including the customer experience. The goal is to demonstrate smoother guidance and reduced waiting times.

[Customer usage flow image for the proof-of-concept experiment]

* The generative AI will handle the confirmation and organization of requests, while station staff will issue tickets.

* Data acquired through the proof-of-concept experiment will be managed appropriately with due consideration for personal information protection.

(1) Implementation stations: Tachikawa Station Midori no Madoguchi (approximately 2 units planned)

Omiya Station Midori no Madoguchi (approximately 2 units planned)

(2) Implementation schedule: July 20 (Mon), 21 (Tue), 22 (Wed) (Tachikawa Station)

July 23 (Thu), 24 (Fri), 25 (Sat) (Omiya Station)

* Proof-of-concept staff will individually approach customers purchasing tickets at the Midori no Madoguchi to request their cooperation. Please note that visits solely for observation without using the counter are not permitted.

* The schedule is subject to change.

(3) Main evaluation items:

1. Accuracy and practicality of request comprehension through generative AI voice dialogue

2. Stability of dialogue in an actual station environment (surrounding conversations, installation environment, etc.)

3. Evaluation of customer experience, including psychological resistance and ease of use

(4) Related companies:

[Development Partners]

・NEC Corporation (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; Director, President and CEO: Takayuki Morita)

・Gen-AX Inc. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Shinichiro Isago)

[Development Supporter]

・SoftBank Corp. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director, President & CEO: Junichi Miyakawa)

* Supports the development of Gen-AX

3. About QR coding of short-distance tickets

From spring 2027, short-distance tickets will be replaced from magnetic tickets to QR tickets, and magnetic tickets will be abolished. The size of the QR ticket will be changed from the current small ticket to a larger ticket to make it easier to hold up the QR code.

By eliminating the magnetic layer on the back, QR tickets will reduce the environmental impact of recycling after use.

Going forward, through the QR coding of short-distance tickets and the further expansion of mobile shift and ticketless travel using transportation IC cards, the company will reorganize and integrate current ticket machine spaces to make them more user-friendly, creating spaces that generate new value and redesigning stations.