SEOUL ROBOT & AI MUSEUM

Melike Altınışık Architects – MAA has won an international competitionin 2019 for the Robot & AI Museum located in Seoul, South Korea. The competition hosted by The Seoul Metropolitan Government called for the ideas to design World’s first pioneer Robot & AI Museum (RAIM) to support public education in robotics and increase the public knowledge and interests in robots.

RAIM is going to be one of the buildings in the center of the renovation area ‘the Changbai New Economic Center’ which is going to be a Cultural Center for Chang-dong in the northern part of Seoul and is going to be linked to the Photographic Art Museum (PAM) which is going to build next to Robot & AI Museum (RAIM) .

Design manifesto of Seoul RAIM is focused on developing a unique architectural language with smart design and smart building methodologies. We preferred a sphere like non-directional, fluid and organic form instead of rigid geometry and orthogonal forms.

We used this form language as a design tool for meeting functional requirements and conditions which creates its own universe for the robots and their visitors inside this museum. It creates a wide range of possibilities for connection with urban orientation and public spaces within its non-directional form generation.

The design principal Melike Altınışık explained that idea and process behind the design.

“The new Robot & AI Museum (RAIM) which plays a catalytic role in advancing and promoting science, technology, and innovation throughout society is not only going to exhibit robots but actually from design, manufacturing to construction and services smart technologies will be in charge. In other words, RAIM will start its ‘first exhibition’ with smart design and smart building methodologies.”

This representative and semantic role to be undertaken from design to construction are as important as meeting the functional requirements at the highest level for the museum. Considering the universality of science and technology, prioritizing the advanced architectural design solutions for such a pioneering museum with a subject of innovation and robots gains a special meaning. In other words, From design to form generation, from structural design to the material, buildings designed in this manner must manifest robots, science, technology, and innovation.

The fluid form of the building surface and landscape formation serve purposes such as incorporating the public space into the interior, organizing pedestrian and vehicle movement, and creating in-between spaces. The functions on the ground floors of the buildings ensure continuity and interaction between the outdoor public spaces and the interior spaces. 

 

Especially the vertical exhibition tunnel located in the centre of RAIM is a special space. RAIM will start taking its visitors into an unique experience with this tunnel it will dissolve the sharp boundary between dualities of this world and the world of Robots & AI related smart technologies. So, people will be able to directly dive into a journey with a scientific, technological, and innovative mission.

Seoul RAIM is not only going to exhibit robots. RAIM will become the ‘Monitoring Center’ for smart technologies which can allow people to interact with smart technologies such as Robots, AI, AR, VR, XR and more. From design, manufacturing, construction to smart service technologies will be in charge.

The journey will start at the entrance gate with the welcoming robot and RAIM will launch its first exhibition with smart design and smart building methodologies. Seoul RAIM will be completed with the official opening slated and first exhibition for late 2024. After the opening, it operates as a branch system of the Seoul Metropolitan Museum.