The chief of South Korea’s largest label, S.M. Entertainment, said celebrities and robots will hold the keys to the future during his speech at the nation’s top tech college.

Lee Soo-man was invited to make a speech Thursday during an event to mark the 10th anniversary of KAIST‘s Graduate School of Culture Technology.

He said the entertainment agency housing a number of hit K-pop stars, including Girls‘ Generation, EXO and Super Junior, believes that celebrities and robots will lead the nation’s future.

“First, more and more people want to be close to their stars and to have connections with them. This market has been growing rapidly with the rise of the Chinese economy and the penetration of the Internet.” he said.

The K-pop guru also said his label has been pondering during the last four years how robots can exist in a high-tech culture.

“We have been working on how music, video and social media can be used in the world of robots and how they can be connected with culture and celebrities,“ Lee said.

He also predicted that in the future it will be important for celebrities to team up with technologies such as robots, software, apps, big data and displays.

By Shin Ji-hye (shinjh@heraldcorp.com)