Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province, has launched a pilot program that uses a phone application as an alternative to ID cards for hotel check-in.

The application, which allows users to identify themselves by scanning their faces on their phones, was launched in May. So far, nearly 2,000 people have used the service in 14 local hotels and one bus station, according to a news report.

After downloading an app and registering their personal information, the user can run a facial recognition scan, and if successful, the hotel will receive their ID information for check-in.