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By Kim Eun-jung

SEOUL, Aug. 21 (Yonhap) -- Galaxy Corp., a South Korean entertainment tech startup, officially opened a robot-themed park in Seoul on Friday, featuring robot-powered K-pop performances and interactive content.

Galaxy Robot Park held its grand opening ceremony at the approximately 16,500-square-meter facility in southeastern Seoul, after attracting more than 20,000 visitors during its pre-opening period since July.

At the park's Robot Arena, surrounded by screens on four sides, artificial intelligence (AI)-powered humanoid robots performed to hit K-pop songs, including Yena's "Catch Catch," Rose's "APT.," BIGBANG's "Bang Bang Bang" and Momoland's "Banana Chacha."

In one performance, five people paired up with five robots to perform taekwondo, a traditional Korean martial art, drawing loud applause as the robots executed jumping side kicks.

The performance was accompanied by music, including the traditional Korean folk song "Arirang" and "Sugar Rush" from the Netflix animated film "KPop Demon Hunters."

In other zones, visitors could operate robot dogs and dance alongside robots through a variety of hands-on programs.

Galaxy CEO Choi Yong-ho said the turnout of more than 20,000 visitors before the official opening demonstrated the potential for robots to become a new form of entertainment beyond their traditional industrial applications.

"We envision combining content with physical AI as the next wave following K-pop," Choi said. "We will make Galaxy Robot Park a starting point for expanding our entertainment business globally."

Galaxy said it plans to leverage its experience in robot-based entertainment to expand into global markets, including the United States, the United Arab Emirates and Japan.

Founded in 2019, Galaxy Corp. combines celebrity intellectual property with technologies such as AI, robotics and the metaverse. The company manages high-profile artists, including K-pop star G-Dragon, actor Song Kang-ho and singer Kim Jong-kook.

ejkim@yna.co.kr

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