Xiaozhu, China’s answer to Airbnb, plans to step up the introduction of facial recognition-enabled smart door locks to help verify the identities of tenants as part of a broader effort to improve safety and security in the country’s booming home sharing industry. The plan to improve safety and security is in line with the Chinese government’s tighter control over home-sharing, mainly for state security reasons. By equipping listed apartments with smart devices, the company aims to address safety concerns over short-term rentals. The operation of this Airbnb-style business has also faced complaints from neighbours over excess noise made by some tenants. Xiaozhu, which has over 500,000 active listings in China, said earlier that the technology behind its security system is provided by Alibaba Group.

Source: The Star December 26, 2018 06:45 UTC