South Korea Transforms 2018 Winter Olympics Into a High-Tech Showcase
South Korea leverages the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics to demonstrate its technological prowess through multilingual robot guides, self-driving buses, and immersive virtual reality broadcasts.
South Korea uses the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang to showcase its status as a global technology leader. The country deploys multilingual talking robots at airports to guide lost travelers and operates Hyundai self-driving buses to transport spectators between the twelve event venues. These innovations highlight a coordinated effort by the government and local tech giants to impress international visitors.
Broadcasters dramatically upgrade the at-home viewing experience by airing all major events in Ultra-High Definition resolution. The games feature the most extensive deployment of 360-degree virtual reality cameras ever seen at a major sporting event, allowing fans to feel as though they are standing directly on the slopes and in the arenas.
Advanced camera techniques provide entirely new perspectives on the athletic competitions. Korean mobile carrier KT Corp offers a "time slice" feature that captures figure skaters mid-motion from multiple angles, while helmet-mounted cameras deliver thrilling first-person footage of alpine events. Broadcasters also utilize "ghost skier" technology to overlay a live run onto a previous run for instant comparison.