Overview
AIVA is SBS Transit’s AI virtual assistant — a digital concierge that helps passengers with travel and wayfinding questions, right where the journey happens.
As Product Designer at Pantheon Lab, I designed the two places people meet her: the end-to-end kiosk experience that guides passengers and visitors through SBS Transit’s services, and the megatron video that introduced AIVA to the public as the face of the product.
The brief
SBS Transit is using generative AI to make public transport smarter, greener and more inclusive, with each assistant built around a different group of commuters. AIVA is the one for everyone: wayfinding and personalised help across bus and rail.
She launched at Punggol Coast Station and Ang Mo Kio Bus Interchange, with more transport hubs to follow. The work came down to two jobs:
Kiosk
I designed the kiosk end to end — from the idle screen that invites someone over, through the conversation with AIVA, to the moment they walk away. It covers navigating SBS Transit’s services, assisting visitors, and helping passengers find their way.
Every screen had to work for everyone, standing or seated in a wheelchair, on the first try and with no instructions.
Megatron
Awareness needed a different surface. The megatron is a ring-shaped screen hung above the concourse, seen from every side and from across the hall, so the video had to land in a few seconds from any angle.
I designed the video player that introduces AIVA as a mascot first and a feature list second. The aim was recognition: by the time passengers reached the kiosk, she should already feel familiar.
Recognition
AIVA won Singapore Digital Experience of the Year — Transportation at the Asian Experience Awards 2025, awarded to SBS Transit.
She was also among the projects showcased at the launch of MINNOVA, the Mobility Innovation Centre set up by SBS Transit and Enterprise Singapore — read SBS Transit’s announcement.
A note on access
AIVA is under NDA, so this page only covers what is already public. I’m happy to talk through the process, the decisions and the trade-offs over a call — deanovelar@gmail.com.