Alimentarium Launches “Alima”

Starting April 15, the Alimentarium will introduce Alima, an artificial intelligence–powered conversational agent designed to help visitors explore the exhibition “SYSTEMA ALIMENTARIUM. Toward a major food revolution?” in an interactive way. Developed in collaboration with the Paris-based startup Ask Mona, Alima offers a new way to access the museum’s scientific and cultural content. The agent is available in five languages — French, English, German, Arabic, and Mandarin — reflecting the diversity of the museum’s audiences. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first conversational AI chatbot dedicated to the content of an entire exhibition in a museum in Switzerland. 

The launch of Alima marks the opening of a new channel of dialogue with audiences. Through this initiative, the Alimentarium explores the potential of artificial intelligence to enhance cultural mediation. 

Alima is available to any visitor with a smartphone capable of scanning a QR code. Once connected, users can freely interact with the agent and ask questions about the themes explored in the exhibition. The chatbot allows visitors to explore the 18 sections of “SYSTEMA ALIMENTARIUM. Toward a major food revolution?”. It explains scientific concepts, provides additional information, and helps guide visitors through the museum experience. Powered by generative artificial intelligence, the system enables fluid conversations without the need for keywords or predefined menus. The interaction develops from the visitor’s questions and can evolve according to their interests. 

Unlike general-purpose AI systems such as ChatGPT, this project relies on 100% verified content specifically developed from the Alimentarium’s own resources, ensuring reliable and contextualized responses. The tone, functionalities, and recommendations were designed specifically to reflect the museum’s identity and the diversity of its audiences. Alima combines conversational AI technologies with a knowledge base built from the exhibition’s scientific content. The information has been selected, structured, and validated by the museum’s curatorial team to ensure the reliability of responses and their consistency with the exhibition’s scientific and museographic framework. 

« With Alima, we are experimenting with a new form of mediation. Artificial intelligence does not replace the museum visit: rather, it offers visitors a new way to explore the richness of the exhibition—its themes, collections, photographs, and the knowledge they bring together—and to engage with the major contemporary questions surrounding food » — Boris Wastiau, Anthropologist and Director of the Alimentarium 

« Conversational agents now make it possible to transform the relationship between audiences and cultural institutions. With Alima, we designed an experience where technology helps make the museum’s scientific content more accessible, more interactive, and available in several languages. » — Marion Carré, Co-founder and CEO of Ask Mona