DSA Launches IKE Smart City Kiosks in Downtown Seattle

Downtown Seattle has a new tool for getting around — and for connecting people to everything the city has to offer.

DSA, in partnership with the city of Seattle and Orange Barrel Media, officially launched the first IKE Smart City digital kiosk in downtown Seattle on June 9 with an unveiling at First Avenue and Pike Street. Attendees heard from DSA leadership and partners from the Office of Economic Development.

IKE (Interactive Kiosk Experience) kiosks are large-format, ADA-compliant touchscreen displays already operating in more than 25 cities nationwide. They serve as centralized hubs for real-time information, navigation, public safety features and local business discovery. The first four downtown locations are at First Avenue & Pike Street, Fourth Avenue & Pine Street, Second Avenue & Stewart Street, and Third Avenue & Virginia Street — with the first two installed ahead of the World Cup.

A total network of 50 kiosks is planned for Seattle, deployed in two phases: 30 within the downtown MID footprint, followed by 20 in participating business improvement districts including Ballard, SoDo, the University District and West Seattle.

Each kiosk offers a wide range of public benefits at no cost to the city or DSA, sustained entirely through advertising revenue. Features include real-time multimodal wayfinding integrated with the Seamless Seattle program, complimentary public Wi-Fi, automatic free listings for nearby businesses and organizations, a 911 emergency call button and digital public art curated in partnership with local and national artists.

At least 25% of annual screen time is reserved for non-commercial public interest content, and the kiosks also provide equitable access to transit information, shelter options, job boards and civic tools like AlertSeattle and Find It, Fix It for those without personal devices. DSA anticipates the network will generate approximately $1.1 million per year in shared advertising revenue to be reinvested into downtown programming.

“These kiosks will help people navigate the city, discover local businesses and stay connected, all while generating revenue to support cleaning, beautification and events in downtown,” DSA President & CEO Jon Scholes said. “This is a smart, zero-cost solution that benefits everyone who lives, works and visits downtown.”