SK Telecom will unveil 'HoloBox', an artificial intelligence (AI) hologram device which allows users to talk face to face with a human avatar, at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2018 held in Barcelona, Spain.

HoloBox is cylindrical device with 365mm in height and 170mm in diameter, and it uses laser-based 'Ultra Short Throw' projection technology to realize avatars with high-definition images.

HoloBox uses AI technology to understand the context of dialog, and its hologram display presents gestures and facial expressions. SK Telecom has divided the facial expressions of the characters into more than 100 categories, so users can easily read the emotions from the characters' faces. The device is also equipped with a microphone and a speaker.

HoloBox, merging with SK Telecom's AI platform called 'NUGU', can be synchronized with music streaming service and the company's Smart Home services.

Holograms could be part of the future real-time video calls. However, such calls require very high data transmissions. For example, a hologram that has the size of a sugar cube, takes up to 1GB. This means that such a service cannot be realized using existing LTE networks, so using 5G will be essential.