If you walk into Canara Bank’s new digital branch on MG Road, you will be greeted by Bro, a customised robot that can talk to you.
The ‘customer care executive’, on duty since Thursday, is taking customers by surprise.
The digital branch, with an array of automated services, is called Candi (short for Canara Digital). The bank’s head office in Bengaluru already has a 4.5-foot Kannada-speaking robot called Mitra.
Bro and Mitra provide information about the bank’s products, lending rates and schemes for students.
When life gets dull, Bro can respond to peppy music and shake a leg.
The robot gestures and engages with customers in a life-like manner. Using voice sensors, it catches keywords and responds to customer queries. Officials say Bro will speak more languages soon.
The robot was imported and programmed by the bank’s digital team. Bro’s speech is casual, a change from the more formal style associated with robots.
HDFC and City Union Bank have already introduced ‘humanoid robots’ with similar capabilities.
Published 27 July 2017, 20:10 IST