JINAN: In the birthplace of Confucius, who has been revered as a symbol of China’s traditional culture, visitors are now greeted not by ancient scrolls or silent statues, but by an AI-powered guide.
Under the glow of digital light and amid the echo of classical music, tourists from around the world follow this soft-spoken robot through Luyuan Village in Shandong Province, and set off on a 2,500-year journey into Confucian philosophy.
Here, holograms flicker across temple walls, real-life actors blend with virtual scenes, and centuries-old teachings unfold through immersive garden trails. It’s a jarring yet mesmerizing collision of past and future, where ritual meets algorithm, and ancient wisdom is reimagined through the lens of artificial intelligence. Just a 10-minute drive away, at another tourist site known as Nishan Sacredland, a different kind of gathering is underway. More than 560 guests from over 70 countries have convened at an ambitious forum on world civilizations, exploring questions from whether Confucius would embrace AI if he lived today, to how humanity can preserve creativity in an era of globalized artificial intelligence. –Agencies
