MSC Cruises has officially revealed ZOE, a personal digital assistant that will be in every stateroom aboard the new MSC Bellissima.

MSC said the new guest-centric technology was developed in partnership with HARMAN and Samsung Electronics.

ZOE is a voice-enabled artificial intelligence (AI) tool found in every stateroom. ZOE can speak seven languages, answer hundreds of questions about the cruise and provide information about on board services, guidance and suggestions or help to book a service.

Guests simply say, “OK ZOE”, and she’s ready to help, MSC said.

The advanced voice recognition feature makes it easy for everyone to control and access information using only voice commands.

ZOE will launch on MSC Bellissima and will then be available on each following new ships in the MSC fleet, including the upcoming MSC Grandiosa in 2019 and MSC Virtuosa in 2020.

 Gianni Onorato, MSC Cruises’ CEO commented, “The cruise experience is constantly evolving to become ever-richer, offering an increasingly wide choice of services and facilities. In 2017, we introduced MSC for Me, an industry-leading digital innovation platform that revolutionized the way that guests were able to customize and personalize their experience. The technology was built into the very design of the new ships, incorporated into every step of the development process of each prototype, from conception to construction.

“This was just the starting point in providing a connected cruise experience. There was a core guest need to be met, which was to find answers to common questions in a quick and easy way, enabling guests to make the most of their vacation. We researched the latest connected technologies and identified voice assistants and Artificial Intelligence as the way to meet this need, and the work on ZOE began.”

 ZOE’s physical design features audio with far field microphones and a professional quality speaker, MSC said. Guests will enjoy fast response times, thanks to the integration of a quad-core processor, and also have the opportunity to connect their phones directly to the device through Bluetooth to enjoy music, podcasts and more directly in their staterooms.

In the future, ZOE will be able to offer further personalization and embedded experiences, and will also become a cross-channel personal assistant that will take on new forms within MSC for Me.