[Edaily Reporter Kim Hyung-wook] #Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) announced that starting on the 10th, ahead of the summer season when air conditioner use increases, it will provide an "AI Electricity Bill Alert Service" to notify users in advance of potential spikes in electricity bills.

The aim is to encourage voluntary energy conservation by notifying users in advance, so they won’t be shocked by their bills a month later after leaving their air conditioners running constantly due to the heat. If, 10 days after the meter reading start date, the estimated bill for the following month is projected to increase by more than 30% compared to the previous month or the same month last year, or by more than 50% compared to the average of the previous three months, customers will be notified via KakaoTalk AlimTalk or a push notification on the KEPCO ON app.

KEPCO developed this service by training artificial intelligence (AI) on customers’ electricity usage data from the past two years. Furthermore, a pilot program conducted from January to October of last year involving 20,000 households in Seoul and Gangwon Province demonstrated the service’s effectiveness, as two-thirds of customers who received the alerts were encouraged to use less electricity than initially predicted.

Starting on the 10th, KEPCO will launch this service for the 1.79 million households enrolled in “Energy Cashback,” a program that provides cash rebates based on energy savings. Furthermore, the service will be expanded to include customers with a monthly projected usage of 450 kilowatt-hours (kWh) or more starting in July, and those with 300 kWh or more starting in August, with plans to provide the service to 11 million households—nearly half of all households in the country—this summer.

An KEPCO official stated, “We expect this service to alleviate the inconvenience caused by unexpected increases in electricity bills and help foster a culture of voluntary energy conservation,” adding, “We will continue to maximize public benefits through AI-powered services.”