Published: Dec 01, 2025
Harnessing AI and digital innovation to redefine the museum experience
For many museum visitors, fine art can feel intimidating and difficult to connect with. To bridge this gap, the National Gallery Singapore (NGS) partnered with NCS to create G(ai)le and MuseBox, an AI-powered virtual guide and advanced app that deliver personalised, interactive, and multilingual experiences. After a successful pilot, the solution was rolled out to help visitors explore exhibits according to their interests, encouraging deeper engagement with the artworks. Visitors praised how G(ai)le and MuseBox enriched their museum experience, offering a more intuitive and immersive way to discover art. At the same time, the platform provides real-time insights that empower curators to refine content and streamline workflows, significantly reducing content curation time. By combining cutting-edge AI with thoughtful design, G(ai)le and MuseBox have set new benchmarks for interactive art appreciation and were honoured with the Singapore Good Design 2025 Award in both the Digital Design and Experience Design categories.
Key takeaways
- More engaging, accessible art experiences
Powered by human-like AI personas that spark natural, curiosity-driven conversations. - Hyper-personalised journeys
Featuring open-ended questions, nuanced guidance, and relatable cultural references. - Award-winning innovation
Recognised with the Singapore Good Design 2025 Award for redefining interactive art appreciation.
The challenge
Museum visitors often find it challenging to connect with art. While pre-recorded audio guides provide useful context, they remain limited.
The solution
- G(ai)le uses generative AI to deliver personalised, interactive journeys. Human-like AI personas, trained in art history and contemporary culture, enable natural conversations that spark curiosity, combining adaptive guidance with immersive storytelling — making art more engaging and accessible.
- MuseBox is a progressive web app that offers a seamless, installation-free guided experience directly through visitors’ mobile browsers, complementing traditional tours and allowing flexible, self-paced exploration.
Together, these tools enhance visitor engagement while providing curators with real-time insights, setting a new standard for interactive, technology-driven museum experiences.
Snapshot of capabilities
- Dyslexia-friendly fonts and visual mode for the hearing impaired.
- An “eyes-up” experience to promote deeper engagement with art and architecture.
- Hyper-personalised content with open-ended questions, nuanced responses, and pop-culture references.
- Supports four languages, enabling natural and relatable interactions.
The impact
- Delivers customised, engaging interactions through real-time AI guidance, helping visitors gain a deeper appreciation of Southeast Asian art.
- Enables museum curators to seamlessly update and manage content (via MuseBox), ensuring information stays relevant and engaging.
- Expands access to personalised learning by reducing reliance on docent-led tours, setting a new standard for AI-driven education and public engagement in the cultural sector.