Aju Business Daily

SEOUL -- KT, South Korea's largest telecom company, has showcased an artificial intelligence (AI) assistant speaker with a built-in internet protocol TV (IPTV) display that could help enhance its competitive edge in the country's growing smart speaker market.

AI assistant speakers were first introduced by SK Telecom, the country's top mobile carrier, in 2016. The market has grown rapidly with more than three million speakers installed at homes at the end of 2018. There is one AI speaker in every seven homes, according to Nasmedia, a mobile marketing agency.

Tech companies have released smart speakers with built-in displays since 2018, playing like a smart home hub to control other appliances such as smart refrigerators and TVs connected to a home network, while displays were used for entertainment such as playing video via YouTube.

KT showcased GiGA Genie Table TV, an AI speaker with an 11.6-inch display, in Seoul on Monday. The speaker is connected to the internet via WiFi and users can watch IPTV. KT's AI business unit vice president Kim Chae-hee said the smart speaker has a built-in IPTV as a point of difference from other products. Users can enjoy "Olleh TV", KT's IPTV service, by paying monthly subscription fees.

GiGA Genie Table TV also has a special educational feature that uses voice synthesis technology. When parents finish recording 300 short sentences via their smartphones, the smart speaker uses their voice to provide a book-reading service for children.