Serving Robots and QR Payments: A Glimpse into Modern Pyongyang

[Anchor]

Recent footage showing the current state of Pyongyang has drawn significant attention. It appears that, much like in South Korea, serving robots are now operating in restaurants, and payments are being made via QR codes.

Reporter Kim A-young has the story.

[Reporter]

As a serving robot moves between empty tables, a North Korean man wearing a badge that appears to feature the image of Kim Jong-il watches with interest.

This video was posted on social media last April by a Chinese national, who identified the location as a shop in Pyongyang called the "Nakrang Patriotic Kumgang Hall."

North Korea unveiled serving robots at a light industry exhibition last October, and it is presumed that they have been deployed here on a trial basis.

Inside the shop, there are also stores that mimic overseas brands.

A coffee shop named "Mirae Reserve," which appears to imitate the logo of the high-end Starbucks Reserve, can be seen, and a North Korean version of IKEA selling interior goods was also captured.

A smartphone-based consumer culture is also evident.

Smartphones are equipped with ride-hailing apps, and signs are posted in various places indicating that QR code payments are available.

Last month, Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, who visited Pyongyang, remarked that the city had achieved significant development compared to his visit eight years ago.

[Jung Eun-lee / Head of North Korean Studies Division, Korea Institute for National Unification: The North Korean economy was extremely difficult during the COVID-19 pandemic. (However, now) overall urban life seems to have improved. Looking at the results, it seems that a lot has changed since the strengthening of ties between North Korea and Russia.]

Experts suggest that the economic situation has improved due to compensation from arms exports and troop deployments to Russia, an increase in trade volume with China, and the absence of large-scale natural disasters over the past few years.

According to estimates by the Bank of Korea last year, North Korea's real GDP in 2024 grew by 3.7% compared to the previous year, marking the largest growth in eight years.

However, as the gap between Pyongyang and the provinces remains significant, critics point out that it is difficult to view these changes as an improvement in the living standards of all North Korean residents.

(Video Editing: Park Sun-soo, Source: X, Xiaohongshu)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.