In the world of experiential design, where creating memorable and immersive experiences is paramount, the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) opens up new avenues for creativity and engagement. Experiential designers now have the power to leverage AI capabilities to enhance their projects, delivering even more personalised and captivating experiences for their audiences.
In this article, the team at Imagineerium explores five ways AI can be integrated into the design process to take the audience journey to a whole new level.
1/ Get Personal
One of the most significant advantages of using AI in experiential design is its ability to analyse vast amounts of data to help personalise the guest experience.
AI algorithms can gather user preferences, behaviour patterns and audience demographics in real-time, allowing you to tailor experiences to suit individual preferences. For example, AI sensors can track guest movements and interactions helping to discern individual preferences which can adjust various elements of the guest experience to suit the individual. This could be useful when distinguishing between different groups, such as families with young children or couples, as the experience might play out differently depending on the age groups of those involved.
A great example of this is the work by HYPERSYN, an award winning British company pioneering the phrase ‘phygital technology’. HYPERSYN is bringing new SmartV solutions to a variety of industries including retail. Its interactive window displays and holographic life-size avatars are coded to track movement and collect data based on who is walking past the storefront at any given time. The display or avatar then changes depending on the type of audience that is viewing the hologram.
Used in an experiential design setting, this could create truly immersive and personalised experiences for audiences, helping them feel even more connected to the narrative.
2/ User Interaction
‘Interactivity’ incorporated into live experiences is on the rise. Using AI powered technology, you can now create more responsive and interactive environments. AI algorithms are able to analyse user inputs, gestures and expressions, enabling the experience to evolve in real-time based on the audience’s reactions. This gives guests the opportunity to feel more in control, which all helps to foster a deeper sense of immersion.
We loved Meta’s brand activation at Cannes Lion Festival 2023 – they created a giant “message in a bottle” sculpture that was set up on the harbour. Attendees were met with a visualisation of messages of encouragement, creative catchphrases and inspiring ideas centred on Cannes Lions. They could add their own anonymous messages that appeared as a new chat bubble on the screen. As the messages “floated” to the top, they turned into soap bubbles that floated out of the bottle, capturing attention across the beach.
This is a perfect example of how interactivity can involve the audience and make them feel a part of the experience.
3/ Stay Ahead of the Curve
With AI’s ability to analyse large data sets, it also has the ability to forecast trends and market insights. This could be particularly useful to help stay ahead of the curve and get involved in certain trends before they rise to considerable popularity.
A good example of this is the work of Turkish-American artist, Refik Anadol. Refik is pioneering the use of AI within art, using it to create beautiful digital installations from different data sets. His work is primarily built around using machine learning, feeding data into a computer to create emotive and transcendental works of art. We’re sure he won’t be the last artist to use this method of creation and we predict an influx of digital art that will soon take over art galleries before we know it.
If you’d like to experience Refik’s artwork first-hand, he is hosting an exhibition in London open now until 7th April 2024.
Check out his work here: Unsupervised — Machine Hallucinations — MoMA – Refik Anadol
4/ Real-Time Feedback
AI-powered tools like ZiflowAI and Adobe Sensei offer invaluable real-time feedback and analysis throughout the design and implementation phases. This dynamic support not only facilitates improvements, but also uncovers opportunities to enhance the overall success of the experience.
Chatbots for example, provide real-time answers ensuring attendees spend less time searching for information and more time engaging with the experience. These can help to provide invaluable insights into their preferences, pain points and levels of engagement. By leveraging this data, you can gain actionable insights that shed light on areas for improvement in future projects and extract invaluable learnings from each experience.
5/ AI-Driven Audio
AI can now offer an even deeper sound experience at events with personalised and interactive audio. AI-driven audio can analyse attendee preferences, behaviour and demographics to deliver personalised content tailored to suit individual interests and preferences. This could include custom playlists, curated music selections or targeted audio advertisements based on user profiles.
A good example of this is Spotify, the leading music app has been using AI to create personalised music experiences for its users. Spotify uses AI to analyse user behaviour, preferences, and context, and delivers customised playlists, recommendations, and features that suit each user’s taste and mood.
One of the most popular examples of Spotify’s AI personalisation is its Discover Weekly playlists, a playlight that is updated every Monday with 30 songs that Spotify thinks the user will like.
Alternatively, AI-driven interactive audio experiences, such as immersive sound installations, augmented reality (AR) audio experiences, or interactive audio games, can engage attendees and create memorable and unique event experiences that help to foster a deeper connection with the audience.
In summary, the combination of using AI within experiential design is leading us into a whole new world of possibilities. By harnessing AI capabilities, we can elevate experiences to new heights, creating experiences that are not only immersive and engaging but also deeply personalised and responsive to the needs and preferences of the audience.
From real-time feedback and analysis to dynamic content personalisation, AI empowers us to push the boundaries of creativity and innovation, to deliver unforgettable experiences that leave a lasting impact.
Calling Bristol creative businesses! There’s still time to join the second round of the Bristol Creative Industries Internship Programme.
In partnership with Babbasa as part of the OurCity2030 Pathway into Creative & Tech, the scheme is a stellar example of how BCI members can come together to fund and deliver a complex programme of internships and training to support some of the region’s most underrepresented young people.
After a successful pilot in 2023 with 14 brilliant agencies, we are now looking for more creative businesses to join our mission. They will support the second cohort of interns during the next phase of this innovative project.
Participating businesses pay a one-off fee which covers:
✅ Onboarding to the programme including guidance and templates around internship structure/workplan.
✅ ED&I, mental health and neurodiversity training with a focus on working with young people from underrepresented groups.
✅ HR support and mentoring from BCI’s dedicated internship programme manager Clare Leczycki.
✅ Recruitment and employment of two interns over six months.
✅ Visit the Bristol Creative Industries Internship Programme page here.
✅ Join an online information event with Clare Leczycki and some 2023 participants on 1 February at 11am. Register here.
✅ Email Bristol Creative Industries membership manager Alli Nicholas on [email protected]
The deadline for signing up to the 2024 programme is 19 February.
A robust public relations (PR) and reputation management strategy is paramount in today’s competitive landscape. We invite you to join us for an informative workshop where we will explore the power of PR and provide you with the knowledge to create a PR blueprint for your business.
Date: Wednesday 22nd November 2023
Time: 09:00 – 11:00 GMT
Hosted by comms experts, this two-hour interactive workshop is designed to equip businesses with the knowledge and tools to leverage positive impact through PR and reputation management for sustainable growth effectively.
Whether you’re a tech start-up, a service provider, or a seasoned entrepreneur, this workshop will provide valuable insights and actionable strategies.
Your corporate reputation significantly impacts your bottom line, accounting for 45% to 100% of your business’s success. It’s not just about what you offer but how your organisation is perceived. A strong reputation can distinguish you, attract customers, and create opportunities. This workshop teaches you the art of a game-changing PR strategy.
1.PR basics
Get a comprehensive introduction to PR. Understand the foundations of crafting compelling stories and messages that resonate with your target audience.
2.Reputation management
Learn how to manage and safeguard your brand’s reputation. Discover strategies to deal with crises effectively and emerge stronger.
3.Creating your PR blueprint
PR in practice; you’ll apply your knowledge from the session to your business. By the end of the workshop, you’ll have your own three-step PR activation blueprint ready to go.
Secure your spot at the workshop by registering on Eventbrite.
The 60th anniversary specials of Doctor Who, Jayde Adam’s Ruby Speaking and Daisy May Cooper’s Rain Dogs are among the shows filmed in Bristol that contributed to TV and film production’s £20.1m boost to the local economy in 2022/23.
We’d love to know your favourite Bristol filmed movie or TV show. Send us a post on X at @Bristol_CI.
The new figures from Bristol Film Office show that £20,134,750 inward investment was generated in 2022-23 by 220 recorded productions.
The office assisted 838 filming days on location in the city and at The Bottle Yard Studios, the largest film and TV studio in the West of England.
A total of 502 licenses were issued which allow filming to take place on Council-owned streets, properties and green spaces.
The report said production levels have held strong in the city since 2021-22 when the economic impact of the sector was valued at £20.8m, the highest figure in a decade.
Among the productions filmed on location in Bristol in 2022/23 were:
Titles filmed at The Bottle Yard included:
Spot the Bristol scenes in the new #DoctorWho trailer! #Bristol #FilmedInBristol pic.twitter.com/yCrJJC3gU9
— Bristol Creative Industries (@Bristol_CI) December 26, 2022
Bristol Film Office celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. It was founded in 2003 by Bristol City Council to “attract, assist and provide business development opportunities for the moving image industry for the benefit of the city’s economy”.
In total, Bristol Film Office and The Bottle Yard Studios have assisted TV and film production worth an estimated £322m to Bristol’s economy. Its operations have generated more than £2.1m income for Bristol City Council through filming permits and charges.
Laura Aviles, senior film manager at Bristol City Council, said:
“It’s fantastic that inward investment generated by film and TV production held strong in Bristolat over £20m last year, a similar value to 2021-22 which included the post-pandemic surge in filming.
“This is proof that Bristol is maintaining its competitive edge as a leading UK filming city, thanks to services provided by Bristol Film Office, expanded facilities at The Bottle Yard and our skilled local crew.
“As we mark 20 years of Bristol Film Office, it’s clear that the impact this service has had over two decades is incredibly far reaching for such a small team. From its early days assisting shows like Teachers and Skins, it has provided a bespoke service to productions that has been reliable and consistent whilst the city’s filming infrastructure has grown, through the creation of The Bottle Yard Studios to its expansion last year.
“Not only has Bristol Film Office facilitated filming worth more than £320m to Bristol over two decades, it also played a central role to Bristol gaining UNESCO City of Film status in 2017.
“It rose to the challenge of supporting safe filming on the streets during the pandemic and has worked over and above to accommodate the higher numbers of crews we’ve welcomed into the city ever since. Its work is vital in attracting productions to Bristol, to spend money in our economy and create work for local crew, companies and facilities.
“I’m hugely proud of all that Bristol Film Office has achieved so far, and the team’s ongoing drive to grow Bristol’s profile even further, as the best UK filming city outside London.”
The second Bristol & Bath Screen Summit takes place in Bristol on 8 November.
We’d love to know your favourite Bristol filmed movie or TV show. Send us a post on X at @Bristol_CI or comment on this post on LinkedIn.
Find brilliant Bristol-based production companies in the Bristol Creative Industries member directory.
Top image credit: BBC/Sid Gentle Films/HBO/James Pardon
Bristol, England, UK – 23rd August, 2023 – Marvin Rees, the Mayor of Bristol, visited Torchbox, a purpose lead, B Corp Certified digital agency, and fast-growing, employee-owned (EO) company, to deepen his understanding of EO business models and explore ways the council can proactively assist these unique companies with the challenges they encounter.
Lisa Ballam, head of marketing at Torchbox said:
“At Torchbox, we’re eager to demonstrate how a business can be profitable and responsible when governed by its workers. We invited Marvin to hear about our journey, how EO companies can be socially responsible, and to encourage others thinking about this route succession.”
Over the last four years, Torchbox has transformed from a founder-led team of 60 to a global employee-driven powerhouse of 150 co-owners. This transition has allowed them to challenge the traditional business model and prove that it’s possible to run a respected, progressive, and financially robust company that values its workforce above all.
Torchbox is deeply committed to diversifying its talent pool, minimising its carbon footprint, and exploring sustainable avenues for business expansion in the US.
Torchbox and the Mayor discussed topics including:
Mayor Rees, the Mayor of Bristol, said “It was great to visit the team at Torchbox, and hear about the exciting work being done from their Bristol office. They are another example of the fast-growing and exciting technology sector we have in the city.
“They are doing impressive work, for huge organisations, on an international level. With clients including NASA, Oxfam, the University of Pennsylvania and Tate London, it’s brilliant to see this work coming out of Bristol.
“I’m looking forward to forming a strong working relationship with them and discover ways of integrating Torchboxes’ expertise into Bristol One City, including connecting their academy to more local talented young people.”
James Leavesley, Torchbox CEO adds:
“Torchbox has a thriving office in the heart of Bristol. It was fantastic to meet with Marvin to understand how we can work closer with local schemes to give back to the community and help Torchhbox prosper”
The Mayor’s visit times with recent changes in the employee-ownership landscape, including Jeremy Hunt’s proposed overhaul of employee ownership schemes. While these reforms aim to boost participation in Save as You Earn (SAYE) and Share Incentive Plan (SIP), there’s controversy brewing around the proposed tax crackdown on entrepreneurs who transition their companies to Employee Ownership Trusts (EOTs).
Career opportunities are available now across many disciplines at Torchbox. Follow @Torchbox for updates on new opportunities.
References:
Bristol, England, UK – 23rd August, 2023 – Marvin Rees, the Mayor of Bristol, visited Torchbox, a purpose lead, B Corp Certified digital agency, and fast-growing, employee-owned (EO) company, to deepen his understanding of EO business models and explore ways the council can proactively assist these unique companies with the challenges they encounter.
Lisa Ballam, head of marketing at Torchbox said:
“At Torchbox, we’re eager to demonstrate how a business can be profitable and responsible when governed by its workers. We invited Marvin to hear about our journey, how EO companies can be socially responsible, and to encourage others thinking about this route succession.”
Over the last four years, Torchbox has transformed from a founder-led team of 60 to a global employee-driven powerhouse of 150 co-owners. This transition has allowed them to challenge the traditional business model and prove that it’s possible to run a respected, progressive, and financially robust company that values its workforce above all.
Torchbox is deeply committed to diversifying its talent pool, minimising its carbon footprint, and exploring sustainable avenues for business expansion in the US.
Torchbox and the Mayor discussed topics including:
Mayor Rees, the Mayor of Bristol, said “It was great to visit the team at Torchbox, and hear about the exciting work being done from their Bristol office. They are another example of the fast-growing and exciting technology sector we have in the city.
“They are doing impressive work, for huge organisations, on an international level. With clients including NASA, Oxfam, the University of Pennsylvania and Tate London, it’s brilliant to see this work coming out of Bristol.
“I’m looking forward to forming a strong working relationship with them and discover ways of integrating Torchboxes’ expertise into Bristol One City, including connecting their academy to more local talented young people.”
James Leavesley, Torchbox CEO adds:
“Torchbox has a thriving office in the heart of Bristol. It was fantastic to meet with Marvin to understand how we can work closer with local schemes to give back to the community and help Torchhbox prosper”
The Mayor’s visit times with recent changes in the employee-ownership landscape, including Jeremy Hunt’s proposed overhaul of employee ownership schemes. While these reforms aim to boost participation in Save as You Earn (SAYE) and Share Incentive Plan (SIP), there’s controversy brewing around the proposed tax crackdown on entrepreneurs who transition their companies to Employee Ownership Trusts (EOTs).
Career opportunities are available now across many disciplines at Torchbox. Follow @Torchbox for updates on new opportunities.
References:
This summer’s arts trail, Unicornfest, will hit the streets of Bristol on Saturday 1st July. This extraordinary event promises to captivate both residents and visitors to the city, as 60 beautifully adorned and crafted unicorn sculptures descend upon the streets of Bristol and surrounding area.
Expect to see the streets come alive with incredible sculpture paintings and designs by the likes of renowned artists such as Bo Lanyon, creator of the much-anticipated Golden Unicorn, and Holy Moly in collaboration with notable sponsors including IKEA, First Bus and Maserati
So, what is happening on the 1st July?
Spanning 55 prominent locations in Bristol and beyond, the arts trail will showcase multiple artists and designs in support of Leukaemia Care.
As part of the 650 Years of Bristol celebrations running this year, after the trail there will be a Farewell to the Unicorns festival at Prop Yard in September followed by an auction of the unicorns in October with proceeds going to the UK charity Leukaemia Care.
The 1st of July will also see sponsor IKEA, host an exciting and free family fun-day event outside their store in Eastville to spread awareness of the trail and collect further donations. As well as displaying two ‘life-sized’ unicorns, they will also be exhibiting a small herd (or blessing as a group of unicorns is known) of smaller unicorn foals, which have been decorated by local schools.
Families are invited to participate in activities such as face painting, experience the fun of a Victorian fair, unicorn racing, and even seize the chance to get a sneak peek at IKEA’s very own unicorns painted and decorated by artists including Amy Magee.
IKEA’s Marketing and Sustainability Manager, Andrias O Shaughnessy, comments: “We’re so excited to be a part of this amazing project. It’s a great opportunity for myself and the rest of the IKEA team to position ourselves as community partners who are very much involved with initiatives like these, and not just as a corporate company.”
Unveiling the Golden Unicorn
Each unicorn has gone through an incredible journey with its artists and sponsors to achieve the final product.
Among these are sculptures painted by Inkie, Cheba and Silent Hobo and the glorious Golden Unicorn, designed by local artist Bo Lanyon as a mystical creature that shimmers in the sunlight, reflecting the light in a beautiful glow.
Bristol-based artist Bo, shares: “It’s been amazing to be part of this project. Creating this unicorn was an incredible journey as I was able to use different techniques like gilding, an ancient technique stretching all the way back to the Egyptians. It’s a meticulous way of working and converting objects into something precious and special.
I’m excited to see the Golden Unicorn take the streets for everyone to see!”
ENDS
About Leukaemia Care
Around 10,000 people per year are diagnosed with leukaemia, and the UK’s leading leukaemia charity, Leukaemia Care, offers support to them all.
For over 50 years, the organisation has ensured that everyone affected receives the best possible diagnosis, information, advice, treatment and support. Their wide range of support services ensures that people get information, practical and emotional support at the times when they need it. This year, they have funded a hospital support worker within Bristol to be on hand at haematology clinics to give advice and signpost services that actively improve the lives of people living with leukaemia.
Unicornfest is set to raise thousands of pounds for the charity to help continue their work in Bristol and beyond.
Get involved
The final few sponsorship opportunities remain. For more information about how to become an event sponsor, visit the Unicornfest website or email Jodie Hancock: [email protected]
Babbasa, the Bristol-based social enterprise, which works to transform the lives of young people from ethnic minority and low-income backgrounds, is celebrating 10 years this month.
Since its founding in 2013, the organisation has helped support over 4,000 people across the city of Bristol, spanning over 60 cultural groups, providing mentoring, skills training and recruitment support to successfully advance their professional ambitions through its network of over 500 cross-industry organisations
This incredible milestone celebration comes following the launch of Babbasa’s ‘OurCity203O’ campaign, which is aiming to support young people from low-income households, starting from inner city Bristol, to secure a median salary role by 2030.
Poku Osei, Founder and CEO of Babbasa, speaks of the organisation’s milestone; “It fills me with immense pride to celebrate a decade of Babbasa. When I started back in 2013 it was with a vision to help create a world where young people living in areas of disadvantage are inspired and able to realise their employment and enterprise ambitions – irrespective of where they live, their nationality, ethnicity, gender, race, sexuality, or faith.
“10 years on I am proud to see the thousands of people we have been able to help and how so many of them have developed the skills and confidence to pursue a professional future in roles and industries that interest them.”
Over the last decade Babbasa’s offer has evolved to include recruitment and inclusion services, focused on supporting organisations to diversify their workforce and create inclusive working environments and is now one of the UK’s leading social mobility agencies.
This has included their recent partnership with Bristol Creative Industries to create a city-wide internship programme. The initiative was designed to help young people (18-24yrs) from underrepresented backgrounds into paid roles within the creative sector and has just seen its first cohort of 14 start roles in many of the city’s leading creative businesses.
Poku continues; “While I am proud of the work we have done to date, and the incredible the team and our extended network does every single day, there is still much more to be done.
“The OurCity2030 campaign will be our core focus for the next 10 years as we aim to lift individuals out of poverty, increase representation at the workplace and create new generation of role models for society. It will act as a catalyst for Bristol to become a world class model city for inclusive growth.”
To commemorate the anniversary, Babbasa will be hosting an event as part of St Paul’s Carnival fringe calendar, to celebrate Babbasa alumni and hear about some the amazing success stories from the last decade.
I’ve been reflecting on a day spent with the wonderful people at Mayden recently. For those that don’t know them, Mayden are a Corporate Rebels bucket list organisation who have flattened their hierarchy and embraced agile across all their activities. Needless to time spent with them is always thought provoking.
Sweeping generalisation alert: I wonder if there are only two types of organisations. Those that have recognised the folly and toxicity of the command and control approach to management and rejected it, and those that haven’t.
Now here’s the thing. Most leaders of most organisations would feel that their approach to management was not “command and control.” yet it is only a tiny minority of organisations who are, genuinely, committed to a path where the tacit assumptions that underpin command and control are entirely absent. Indeed, many accepted best practices are built on one or more of those assumptions.
Another way of framing it is to consider which of the following open questions better describes your organisations’ approach to people:
These two questions set you on very different paths, so is there any middle ground? A question I’ll return to.
Bill Gore set up W.L Gore to create an organisation entirely free of bureaucracy. Jos de Blok set-up Buurtzorg to reconnect nurses with the job that they loved and to give their patients the best, personalised care. Chris May developed Mayden with a desire to do something better for its people than follow the herd with conventional management. Although very different in size, sector, era and geography there are spooky similarities in the norms and everyday practices you would find in all three organisations. And I guess we shouldn’t be surprised; if you set-out to create your organisations to fundamentally “work with the grain” of humans; our psychology, sociology, and anthropology we will, by iteration and emergence, arrive in a similar place.
If we set out now to invent the norms and mechanisms of our organisations based on what we know about humans and human performance, what we’d come up with would bear no relation to what we see in most organisations today.
Bill, Jos and Chris all bore the scare tissue of experiencing command and control management and that galvanised them to create something different. Those different “somethings” were all built on very different and better informed assumptions about people. Most of us are not in that situation. The organisations that most of us lead are work in progress, not a blank sheet of paper. Many of us feel that we have inherited a situation which is not of our design, very likely there are bits about it that we don’t like and perceive those bits to be hard to change.
No start-up has ever scaled and flourished into an organisation and got everything right first time. Snags, glitches, wrong calls and failures are inevitable and essential to finding the right path for your unique situation. Even the poster child progressive organisations have had these set-backs along the way, they are quite open about them.
This is perhaps where we find the middle ground, every organisation will have its own level of comfort or discomfort with the conventional approaches to management. The more discomfort there is, the more rapid the evolution will be.
So, assuming you ascribe more to Q1 (How do we create the conditions where people find great intrinsic reward in giving the best of their whole self at work?) than Q2, how do we get started and how quickly can we progress? Here I’m reminded of something that Margaret Heffernan said when speaking with Lisa Gill on her excellent Leadermorphosis podcast.
“…do not think you can think your way to the answer. You can’t, it’s impossible. You have to do something different and see how the system responds. From that you’ve learned something that you can build on. But absolutely, none of us can solve these real world problems in our heads. It’s not physics, it’s not math. It’s human beings working together. And the way people learn to work together, is by working together.”
The practice of experimentation is the key. Experimentation is largely absent in command and control organisations, and woven into just about everyone’s roles in progressive organisations. Based on our research into change-enabled organisations, experimentation is the “how” that applies to the majority of the 26 areas of practice that our research identified.
Experimentation is also, in and of itself, a practice that helps people find great intrinsic reward and creates opportunities for them to give the best of their whole self at work. It is also the engine-room of ever-improving ways of working. So, both the process and the output are accelerants to the evolution.
Absolutely not. Some are more command and control than others, some more human-centric. But if you are committed to a journey from the former to the later, giving people the time, the safe climate, and the autonomy to develop their own safe-to-try experiments will really help build momentum. What’s stopping you from experimenting with it?
The Vitality Index (VI) engenders the habit of experimentation in every team in the organisation. Based on our research, The VI is able to identify the three (out of 26) areas of practice that, if changed will be most beneficial to that specific team at the current moment in time. These insights, in combination with some independent facilitation from us and some inspiration from the Vitality playbook get the teams started on their journey towards ever-better ways of working. This is not just experimentation, this is change that the team own, change that is emergent and responsive and most importantly change that people feel good about.