Compared to Japan, where 90 of golf courses operate without caddies and use an automated service model, golf course management in Taiwan still heavily relies on human labor Facing a labor shortage of up to 70, adopting a site and membership management platform to provide intelligent golf services may be a transformation worth considering for golf course operators 'Taiwan's software technology is comparable to international standards and definitely has the capability to compete in the global market,' says Tsung-Che Liao, co-founder and CEO of Golface, established in 2014 with the vision to leverage technology at its core, aiming to create Taiwan's first golf entertainment platform With over 9 years vested in cultivating intelligent golf services, Liao is well-versed in the nuances of golf course services He has considerable domain knowledge and has launched a comprehensive intelligent golf solution The world's first networked smart golf cart hits the road automation of golf courses is no longer just a dream In mid-May, Golface's newly developed ARES Smart Golf Cat, the world's first networked smart golf cart, officially became operational Equipped with a dedicated vehicle computer mainframe, dual network systems, AI-based visual recognition cameras, and high-precision GPS tracking, golf courses can now confidently allow golfers to drive themselves The system enables real-time monitoring of any driving violations, and the presence of digital consumption traces allows for insurance coverage The procedure is as follows golfers book the cart via a reservation platform, receive a QR code, pay through the platform, and unlock the cart with the QR code at the golf course The golf cart can then be driven onto the course The course management platform can monitor and restrict the areas through which the cart can travel, ensuring it does not leave the paths Upon completion, the cart is returned through a tablet in the cart In instances of any infractions, penalties are applied directly through the user's account, and for severe violations, future access to the carts may be prohibited This achieves the goal of 'automation' ARES Smart Golf Cat is the world's first networked smart golf cart, officially in service since May 2022 'As labor costs continue to rise, recruiting and training caddies are becoming common pain points in the market While Taiwan's courses still employ caddies, there's a 70 labor shortage,' Tsung-Che Liao added This smart golf cart tablet, combined with a mobile app, has become the ultimate smart caddy Golface is striving to complete the last piece of the 'automated golf course' puzzle Amassing digital consumption trails for advanced client segmentation services Starting with consumer needs, Golface has sequentially launched services like the golf cart tablet, mobile app, golf reservation platform, instructional videos Golface TV, golf tourism, and smart carts The smart cart has been operational since May 2022, currently featuring four units with plans for mass production in the latter half of 2022 Although the cart currently requires manual operation by golfers, remote operation is anticipated early in 2023, with autonomous driving expected in the third phase Via the cart tablet and management system, staff can understand the status of the course through on-screen visual representations, showing each cart's real-time and relative location, departure times, and duration of service per hole, which aids course managers in monitoring on-course consumption effectively, thus reducing traffic jams and customer complaints 'Previously, we relied on staff's mental imagery now, we can employ imagery to visualize real-time situations on the course This makes it possible for those who don't understand golf to work in this field,' emphasized Tsung-Che Liao While course control has traditionally been handled by experienced professional players, the shortage of skilled professionals makes hiring even more challenging Therefore, replacing manpower with digital tools yields twice the result with half the effort The golf cart tablet has entered the Japanese golf market, installed at Fukuoka Century Golf Club Golface's golf cart tablet has been introduced to 14 domestic courses, and has now officially entered the Japanese market, favored by Fukuoka Century Golf Club, where tablets have been installed in carts providing automatic voice announcements for hitting strategies, distance measurements, and visual charts displaying hitting data During the COVID-19 pandemic, with borders closed, Golface utilized OTA technology to provide software updates and troubleshooting, ensuring uninterrupted services, which was highly appreciated by the Japanese golf courses Tsung-Che Liao remarks that Taiwan's software technology is not inferior to other countries like Japan, but more support from golf courses is needed to help transform the industry intelligently 'To assist in the transformation of golf courses, the first step is digitalization,' Liao pointed out By helping courses accumulate data and understand customer service cycles and hitting rhythms, it enables courses to avoid congestion and serve more customers To date, Golface has accumulated data on over 20,000 teams, 35 million scorecards, and over 10 million records This data helps enhance management performance, segment customer layers, reduce complaints, and plan marketing strategies for off-peak periods Golface co-founder and CEO Tsung-Che Liao has spent 9 years deepening intelligent golf services, aiming to build Taiwan's first golf entertainment platform「Translated content is generated by ChatGPT and is for reference only Translation date：2024-05-19」

The use of drones for intelligent inspection is becoming increasingly common, with major petrochemical and solar power plants continuing to adopt drone applications Located in Hsinchu, Extreme Present Technology earthbook has established a 4D cloud platform using its proprietary technology, offering drone, software, and data analysis platform services for intelligent inspections at solar power and petrochemical plants, reducing the total cost to just one-fifth of traditional methods involving hardware and software purchases, and cutting down the time from one month to approximately 24 hours, making it highly cost-effective For petrochemical industry operators who are constantly in a high-temperature, high-pressure dangerous environment, the safety control and inspection of plant facilities are critical 'As long as we can enhance the capabilities of facility inspection and risk identification in petrochemical sites, resource input is absolutely not an issue,' said a petrochemical industry representative with emphasis By implementing the drone 4D AI inspection cloud platform, the efficiency and safety of facility inspections among petrochemical operators can be elevated, further reducing the risk of equipment downtime Founded in March 2018, Extreme Present Tech has become a consistent winner in domestic entrepreneurship competitions, including being crowned champion in the 2019 OPEN DATA Business Innovation Practice, selected into Microsoft's startup accelerator in 2020, chosen for NVIDIA's AI startup team in 2021, and its products have been launched on the Microsoft Azure platform, earning investments from the National Development Fund and major domestic groups, thereby securing strong market validation for its technical prowess and services The founder and CEO of Extreme Present Tech, Hsu Wei-Cheng, mentioned that at the beginning of its establishment, the company took on the national space center's satellite 3D photography scheduling system and specialized in the integration of geographic information into 3D images As drone hardware technologies matured, the company shifted its operations towards the drone market and combined it with AI image recognition systems to establish a 4D cloud DaaS platform, offering services including online aerial photography ordering DaaS, 5GAIoT cloud platform SaaS, and enterpriseAPI server software, to meet the demands of drones in smart cities, facility inspection, engineering management, disaster response, pollution monitoring, and other applications, maximizing the value of drone services Smart aerial inspection regularly tracks the health status of plant equipment at a glance The quantity and area of petrochemical plants in Taiwan are immense, lacking sufficient manpower for comprehensive equipment inspections Given that petrochemical plants produce high-temperature flammable and corrosive chemicals that must be transmitted and stored through pipelines and tanks, long-term risks like pipeline ruptures and tank blockages could lead to severe occupational safety disasters, equipment downtime, and production stagnation Given the shortfalls in personnel for equipment inspections among petrochemical operators, Extreme Tech has already implemented a 4D AI drone inspection cloud platform combined with AI image recognition technology in petrochemical plant areas, providing ground-breaking evidence through the use of drones and proprietary app software services that connect on-site aerial data collection to the cloud platform, achieving fully automated and real-time aerial monitoring of petrochemical plant equipment pipelines, tanks, and ensuring precise locations and angles for each aerial operation, effectively compensating for the discrepancy in human inspection Hsu Wei-Cheng pointed out that the inspection drones used in petrochemical plants are equipped with dual lenses, one visible light and the other thermal infrared, which allow for determining pipeline obstructions through temperature conditions, enabling clients to immediately view the inspection status of the plant area from remote locations via the earthbook website, enhancing clients' inspection efficiency and accuracy The 4D aerial data platform meets diverse applications such as smart cities, transportation, engineering management, and pollution monitoring DaaS Online Order-Use Model Innovates Aerial Photography Business Model Saving 15 Costs Apart from providing a 4D aerial data platform, Extreme Present Tech also offers DaaS Drone as a Service After customers place orders on the website, Extreme Present coordinates with professionally licensed aerial photographers to provide on-site services Customers can monitor real-time operations through the platform and quickly obtain aerial data to evaluate any abnormalities, enabling timely alerts Take the solar power plant monitoring service as an example Given that solar power plant areas are large and widely distributed, located in the remote Pingtung area with the headquarters in Taipei, for inspections of the Pingtung plant, the customer just needs to use the DaaS service model, directly order online and upload a map of the Pingtung plant, obtain a quote from the company, and then entrust local Pingtung pilots to perform aerial inspections of the solar power plant During the process, the drone's route is automatically calculated by AI to plan the flight path, and the aerial data is transmitted to the client's cloud account, allowing the Taipei headquarters clients to immediately see the inspection status of the solar power plant from the earthbook website such as the condition of the solar panels, dust detection, or abnormal heat generation from solar electromagnetism, effectively helping the customer significantly reduce operational costs and efficiently complete the solar power plant inspection service Introduction of DaaS online aerial photography service in petrochemical plants According to estimates, solar power plant clients often incur high personnel costs by purchasing drones or outsourcing aerial photography With the long-term provision of aerial photography devices and the DaaS business model by Extreme Present Tech, customers can save 45 of aerial photography costs, and obtain aerial inspection reports within 24 hours post-operation, helping clients efficiently identify issues with solar panels Aiming to become the largest aerial data service company and enter the Southeast Asian market Since its establishment in 2018, Extreme Present Tech has rapidly grown in the aerial photography market with innovative thinking, actively expanding its aerial data application services Currently focused on cultivating the Taiwan market, the company aims to enter Southeast Asian nations, with Indonesia chosen as the first stop due to its high demand for infrastructure Hsu Wei-Cheng hopes that earthbook becomes the world's largest aerial data service platform Besides completing the initial round of funding from the National Development Fund and major groups, to penetrate the international market, the company continuously improves its drone data services and AI technology innovations, while also requiring the assistance of entities like the Industrial Technology Research Institute to find strategic investors that complement the company, fulfilling its goal of becoming an international aerial data corporation in phases Founder and CEO of Extreme Present Tech, Hsu Wei-Cheng「Translated content is generated by ChatGPT and is for reference only Translation date：2024-05-19」