Gen City Labs

Reflecting on some of our favorite past projects, we're proud of our collaboration with the ESSENCE Festival of Culture, where we developed an Augmented Reality 360° Portal. This immersive experience allowed users worldwide to virtually step into the festival—from the Convention Center's pink carpet to the Superdome stage. In its inaugural year, the portal exceeded viewing goals by over 500%, with average engagement surpassing 5 minutes. Gen City Labs is committed to blending cutting-edge technology with cultural experiences, making events accessible to all. #AugmentedReality #ESSENCEFest #GenCityLabs #ImmersiveExperience

?? Top 5 Activations from the GCL Team ?? Here are my top five favorite activations that showcase the incredible work of our team: ?? Super Bowl 50 in SF: An amazing showcase for Visa, SAP, Hyundai, and the NFL. We excelled with VR activations, physical/digital experiences, custom photo ops, and early facial recognition 3D scans! ?? Microsoft Landmark: An impressive physical buildout with a killer app to showcase edge computing. Modular design allowed it to scale for large shows and shrink for smaller ones—truly versatile! ?? IBM at SXSW: Early VR days, where people rode bicycles through downtown Austin, guided by Watson AI. A unique and fun activation, and the first of its kind! ?? Panasonic at the US Open: The first augmented reality photo experience featuring celebrity Mardy Fish. This innovative concept sparked a wave of copycats and showcased our team's exceptional creativity. ?? Oracle Infinite Runner: A perfect blend of education and gamification. This app was flexible enough to be used on a show floor and redeployed at Oracle's executive briefing center for a more permanent installation. Proud of our team's ingenuity and creative execution across these projects! #EventMarketing #BrandActivations #GCLTeam #Innovation #ExperientialMarketing

The Art of Interactive Engagement: KO Kommentator for KUDO/UFC What’s the most exciting part of a UFC fight outside the ring? It’s got to be the commentators, right?! Gen City Labs collaborated with 160over90 and KUDO Protein Popcorn to create a unique and exciting experience that put guests in the ringside seat, gave them a microphone, and challenged them to react to the best UFC knockouts. Guests at the UFC International Fight Week Fan Fest became commentators and entertainers, displaying their energy and enthusiasm while reacting to their favorite knockouts. At the end of it all, guests could enjoy the results on screen while also receiving a video of their breakout performance via email. The video included their commentary cut with shots of the fight and wrapped up in KUDO / UFC branding that could be shared to social media at the click of a button. #EventTech #FanEngagement #DigitalInnovation #EventMarketing #Events #ExperientialMarketing #BrandActivation #BrandExperience #ImmersiveMarketing #BrandStrategy

Bridging Art and AI: The BEING Project with Rashaad Newsome American interdisciplinary artist Rashaad Newsome wanted to create a human-centered AI that expressed the best of humanity, unencumbered by the corrupting influence of systematic racism and oppression. GenCityLabs helped realize this vision with BEING (the Digital Griot), a social humanoid AI chatbot undefined by race or gender, which uses a combination of 3D animation, game engines, generative grammars, scripted responses, and machine-learning models to actively engage with — and teach — humans. Newsome developed BEING’s search algorithm which uses non-Western indexing methods and highlights alternate histories and archives such as abolitionist, queer, and feminist texts. The model was trained primarily on the works of authors, social activists, philosophers, and poets like Bell Hooks, Dr. Cornel West, and Paulo Freire. GCL rigged and modeled BEING so that it could animate in real-time using custom-choreographed motion capture. Next, GCL integrated voice-to-text software which allowed guests to speak and ask questions to BEING as well as text-to-voice software which allowed BEING to speak from its wealth of information. In addition to performing at a few museums, BEING was a months-long installation at the Park Avenue Armory in NYC where workshops were held combining lecture, dance, storytelling, mindfulness meditation and Q&A. BEING was recently featured as part of the New Frontiers programming at the Sundance Film Festival. #Innovations #ArtAndAI #EventTech #FutureIsnow #AI #Experiential

?? What We Learned: Final Four ?? The Final Four was a showcase of incredible brand activations and exceptional experiences. We observed unique engagement levels that surpassed many other major sports events. The key driver? The highly coveted 18-28 age demographic, and it was evident throughout. Here are some standout activations from the event: ?? AT&T: An interactive, AI-enabled futuristic basketball experience that captivated attendees with cutting-edge technology. ?? Home Depot: A Shaq-enabled augmented reality photo experience that blended fun and innovation seamlessly. ?? Coca Cola: 'Creator Stations' that allowed attendees to easily create and share cool social media content, boosting online engagement. ?? Nissan: Large footprints outside the stadiums of both the Men's and Women's Final Four, featuring thematic scenes, unique hoops for play, and a series of interactive spaces within their footprint. ?? Invesco: An immersive LED surround experience that took attendees through a thrilling 'last second shot' simulation. ?? Comcast: A slow-motion, confetti cannon experience that left attendees with memorable, shareable takeaways. Our takeaway? DIGITAL IS BACK - and the fans love it! The Final Four showcased how digital activations can create memorable and engaging experiences for attendees, driving deeper brand connections. #FinalFour #BrandActivation #FanEngagement #DigitalInnovation #EventMarketing

Discussing more ways that brands could level up their game for themed events! #BrandMarketing #Experiential #ExperientialMarketing #Marketing #EventTech #BrandActivation #FanEngagement

?? How to Turn an Event Audience into a Community ?? Transforming an event audience into a thriving community is a game-changer for brand engagement and loyalty. Here’s how to foster a sense of belonging and connection that lasts long after the event ends: ?? Create Shared Experiences: Design interactive activities that encourage attendees to collaborate and connect. For example, host team challenges where attendees work together on creative projects or problem-solving tasks. ?? Leverage Technology: Use event apps and social media platforms to keep the conversation going. Set up a dedicated event hashtag and encourage attendees to share their experiences on Instagram or Twitter. Create a LinkedIn group for continuous networking and discussion. ?? Recognize and Reward: Acknowledge active participants and contributors. For instance, give out digital badges or certificates to those who engage the most in event discussions or contribute valuable insights during sessions. ?? Facilitate Meaningful Conversations: Host Q&A sessions, panel discussions, and roundtables that allow attendees to voice their opinions and share insights. Implement an “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) session with industry leaders to facilitate open dialogue. ?? Build a Post-Event Strategy: Keep the momentum going with follow-up emails, newsletters, and post-event meetups. Share event highlights through a post-event video recap and invite attendees to a virtual meetup to discuss key takeaways and next steps. ?? Provide Value Continuously: Offer valuable content and resources regularly. Organize monthly webinars on relevant industry topics or provide access to an exclusive library of whitepapers and research reports to keep the community engaged. Turning an event audience into a community is about creating lasting connections and providing ongoing value. By fostering engagement, leveraging technology, and maintaining communication, you can build a loyal and active community around your brand. #CommunityBuilding #EventStrategy #AudienceEngagement #BrandLoyalty #EventMarketing

?? Creating Interactive, Experiential Stories ?? Crafting interactive, experiential stories is more complex than it seems. We must consider every aspect of the consumer journey—from attracting them to the experience, engaging them deeply, and creating messages that resonate long after. And that's just the beginning! #ExperientialMarketing #ConsumerEngagement #Storytelling #BrandExperience

in what ways do you think Brands could level up their game for experiences? #BrandMarketing #Experiential #ExperientialMarketing #Marketing #EventTech #BrandActivation #FanEngagement

?? How to Turn Consumers Into Fans ?? The age-old question for all brands: How do you convert a customer into an advocate who actively promotes and shares your brand? The answer lies in psychology. People share what they find valuable, whether it’s financial savings, humor, or efficiency tips. Empower your customers with tools to provide value to their friends and followers on social media. Offer shareable content that saves money, makes them laugh, or streamlines their day. By doing so, you can transform customers into advocates and advocates into passionate evangelists. #BrandLoyalty #CustomerAdvocacy #MarketingStrategy #BrandEvangelism