City hall in Gifu Prefecture is first in Japan to deploy autonomous robots to aid residents

GIFU - At its city hall on Tuesday, a local government in central Japan demonstrated an experiment showing robots that can independently guide people to the right information window or teach them how to fill out government forms. Ogaki city in Gifu Prefecture is the first local government in Japan that is attempting to use robots that will autonomously guide people, according to the city, which is looking to integrate them into its services in 2020. "I would like to use robots to increase our services to our residents, and make our municipal office a gathering place where we can have fun," said Ogaki Mayor Bin Ogawa. At the event, an autonomous robot shaped like a tube guided the mayor from the information counter to the elevator. Ogawa wants the project to be implemented in 2020 when a new government office is set to open.