"Using a Smartphone with Voice Only"... 'AI Assistant' Who is Installed in T Phone

SKT Launches Intelligent Phone Service 'T Phone x NUGU'

[Asia Economy Reporter Joeslgina] "I received a loan marketing call. Should I answer it?" "Aria, don’t answer."

An era has opened where you can use a smartphone with just your voice without lifting a finger. This is because SK Telecom has equipped its AI voice assistant 'Nugu (NUGU)' on smartphones. You can command calls and text message sending and receiving, as well as music playback and news checking by voice. Emergency SOS, meal menu recommendations, and other features previously supported on AI speakers are also available.

T전화×Nugu, the first step toward AI personalization

On the morning of the 12th, SK Telecom held an online briefing and announced the launch of the intelligent phone service 'T전화×Nugu,' which combines its AI platform Nugu with 'T전화.' T전화 is SK Telecom’s communication platform that offers automatic call recording, spam call blocking, unknown number search, overseas roaming, and more, with a monthly active user (MAU) base of 12 million.

SK Telecom made it so that anyone using T전화 can use their smartphone by talking to AI for free, regardless of their mobile carrier. An SK Telecom official explained, "T전화×Nugu is the first stage of AI personalization pursued by SK Telecom," adding, "We plan to provide users with new communication experiences through AI, such as voice recognition and content recommendations."

Users of ‘T전화×Nugu’ can use various communication functions of T전화 by voice alone, including ▲making and receiving calls and texts, video calls, ▲T114 phone number search, ▲checking call and text records, and ▲answering or rejecting calls. SK Telecom focused on implementing a command-response system close to human conversation in this process.

They also introduced 'Today,' which analyzes individual usage patterns, location, weather, and more with AI to recommend various customized content. For example, if you greet T전화×Nugu with "Good morning," it responds with a morning greeting followed by the date, weather, and major news. Saying "I'm back" triggers a thank-you message along with the current time and playback of preferred music. Customized menus or recommended music based on time and place can also be checked.

Existing features provided on the Nugu speaker, such as ▲music and audio functions like Flo, Podbbang, and radio, ▲convenience features like smart home control, schedule management, and emergency SOS, and ▲over 30 various services including menu recommendations, weather, and horoscopes, are fully supported. An SK Telecom official said, "Through the T ID, we plan to allow users to enjoy personalized Nugu services regardless of the device they use in the future."

T전화, advancing as an AI business platform

SK Telecom plans to develop T전화 into an AI business platform. First, within next year, they will expand AI services such as convertible calls combining voice and text, and call recording STT, and sequentially update recommendation services, search ads, and coupons. In the first half of 2022, they plan to introduce an AI recommendation and search-based reservation-order-payment system to T전화, completing T전화×Nugu as a genuine AI business platform.

On this day, SK Telecom also announced plans to release the dedicated earset 'Nugu Buds' in November. Using Nugu Buds, users can call T전화×Nugu simply by wearing or touching the earset without separate smartphone operation. Lee Hyun-ah, head of SK Telecom’s AI Service Division, said, "Through T전화×Nugu, which is more than just the meeting of AI and phone, we will provide customers with a richer communication experience."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.