Technology

Tech Stack: The Sphere glimpse, AI robots and more…

Aura the Robot at The Sphere

Featured image credit: Sphere Entertainment

Our weekly tech round-up from the world of ticketing and associated industries…

First glimpse of The Sphere’s screen

Filmmaker Darren Aronofsky has offered a first glimpse of the gargantuan screen inside The Sphere in Las Vegas.

Although the Las Vegas Strip’s newest venue’s 580,000-square foot exosphere has been on full display since July, its interior with “the largest screen on the planet” has remained tightly guarded until this week.

Sphere screen
Postcard From Earth is displayed on The Sphere’s vast screen

In a video posted via Instagram, Aronofsky debuted footage from his upcoming nature film Postcard From Earth, which opens at the Sphere on October 6, while sitting in the stands. In the accompanying caption, the filmmaker revealed his team was testing the sound mix on the venue’s 160,000 speakers while taking in a sweeping visual on the “largest screen on the planet” boasting an 18k, 60 frames-per-second display.

Aura the Robot

The Sphere has also announced the creation of Aura the Robot, a humanoid who will permanently reside in the grand atrium. Serving as the venue’s spokesbot, Aura will interact with guests at the next-generation venue, and serve as an integral part of The Sphere Experience.

Aura can answer complex questions about the ground-breaking engineering, layers of custom-designed technology and the creative mission at the core of venue, as well as queries for directions within the venue and details on each day’s performances.

“Aura’s role at Sphere marks a truly innovative application of robots, providing guests from around the globe with an opportunity to move into the future of entertainment and interact within a new technological frontier,” said David Dibble, CEO, MSG Ventures, a division of Sphere Entertainment. “Our vision with every aspect of Sphere is to transform the way people experience live events, and with Aura we are pushing the boundaries of how robotics can be used to enhance our guests’ journey through the venue.”

U2 will be the first band to perform at The Sphere as part of a residency that will take place from September 29 to November 4.

Live events chat solution brings immediate returns

Satisfi Labs and AXS have teamed up to launch a new AI chat solution for live events.

The chat feature, powered by Satisfi Labs’ Context Large Language Model (LLM) Response System, can swiftly answer basic questions. The companies said this will allow the AXS Contact Center human representatives to spend quality time solving more complex situations fans may encounter.

The AI chatbot has already been deployed in North America, Europe, and Australia, with AXS seeing an immediate reduction of customer service wait times and increased satisfaction.

“Quickly resolving inquiries, particularly during major event on-sales, is critical to the overall fan experience. For three years, Satisfi Labs has helped us quickly and easily service our customers and address their inquiries.” said Tom Andrus, chief operating officer for AXS.

“We look forward to continuing our integration and improving together as we deliver the best customer experience in the industry.”

Don White, CEO of Satisfi Labs, said: “Ticket service providers like AXS are embracing the current moment and the technology that will allow them to take the customer experience to new heights, understanding the positive impact that it has on both the customer and the provider.”

New charity option for hospitality

Lolly, the hospitality technology specialist, has launched a new charity payment functionality.

The new system, which runs across all Lolly PoS, self-serve and app functions enables hospitality providers to support multiple charities, as opposed to being restricted to only one.

The hospitality provider is able to create multiple charities for the customer to choose from, providing the charity’s title, logo and description. The parameters include round-up, open donation and percentage, where retailers can select one or all of them.

Peter Moore, chief executive at Lolly, said: “Our focus is to provide cutting edge technology for our clients which enhances the customer experience. We want them to provide the most comprehensive offering to their customers.