Seoul Deploys AI to Front Lines of disaster Response,Enhancing Emergency Handling
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Seoul,South Korea – Seoul has launched a pioneering AI callbot system designed to streamline emergency response by handling initial voice interactions with callers,identifying urgent incidents,and connecting them to human dispatchers at the Seoul Emergency Operations Center. This initiative marks a meaningful step in leveraging artificial intelligence for public safety and civic services.
AI’s Role in Disaster management
The AI system is equipped with advanced analytical capabilities, enabling it to detect signs of complex disasters like fires or building collapses. It achieves this by identifying patterns and clusters of similar reports originating from the same geographical area.Since its pilot launch in March, the AI callbot has processed 11,434 reports, with 2,250 of these classified as emergencies requiring immediate attention.
expansion and Future Plans
seoul plans to broaden the AI system’s request beyond managing call surges. Under a new AI-based disaster information management system, the technology will also handle routine daily calls and civic complaints related to minor urban issues such as road flooding or drainage problems.To ensure public safety and system reliability, all AI responses will initially be under real-time human operator monitoring. Full pilot operations are slated for the second half of 2026.
In anticipation of the national AI basic Act,which takes effect in 2026,Seoul is also undertaking “trustworthiness verification” of its AI administrative services in collaboration with the Telecommunications Technology Association. The city has also proactively enacted its own “AI Basic Ordinance” to govern AI usage.
Broader Digital Inclusion Efforts
Beyond disaster response, Seoul has also initiated a program deploying 125 digital aides across 310 locations within its 25 districts, starting July 15. These aides provide assistance to residents who face challenges with digital tasks, including smartphone usage, app installation, and kiosk operation. As the program’s inception in the latter half of 2022, a total of 815 aides have supported approximately 690,000 residents, with about 90 percent of those assisted being individuals aged 60 and above.
Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon emphasized the city’s commitment to digital advancement, stating, “By integrating AI throughout the city management, we will make people’s lives more convenient and advance Seoul as a digital city.”
