For the very first time, Niantic was an official partner of The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity! We took the festival by storm with a number of WebAR activations built using the 8th Wall platform by our partners which enabled delegates to experience the festival like never before.

Brands and marketers were inspired on how to use AR by going on a WebAR scavenger hunt around the Festival Terrace. “Doty’s Metaverse Trek'' was a five-item challenge which asked delegates to help Niantic’s adorable yeti, Captain Doty, collect camping gear around the festival. Created by WebAR agency, Aircards, in partnership with Emodo, Ericsson’s Mobile Advertising arm, and enabled by 8th Wall’s Image Target technology, five signs around the Terrace featured a Captain Doty target which triggered the WebAR game. Using their smartphone, delegates unlocked a portal within the sign where they navigated Doty to collect items. At any time, users could also place Captain Doty in the world in front of them and take them for a walk around the festival.

 

The official Niantic Happy Hour which took place on the Festival Terrace on Thursday had a number of WebAR activations triggered from QR codes on coasters, table top stickers and signs. One of these experiences enabled delegates to take the Niantic ARship on a flight around the festival using the power of web-based augmented reality. Created by Wonderment by Design using 8th Wall’s World Effects technology, delegates placed a tiny model of the Niantic ARship anywhere at the festival and navigated it around the event by tapping on the ground. Once the ARship arrived at the perfect location, delegates took a picture or recorded a video to share this extraordinary moment with their friends, colleagues, and network.

 

 

Try it yourself by clicking this link.

 

To help delegates connect and break the ice during the Happy Hour, we challenged them to a game of Tic-Tac-Toe in AR. This multiplayer experience created by Orb Amsterdam, took the classic two-person game into the next dimension using the 8th Wall platform. Triggered from QR code stickers found on tables around the Terrace, delegates joined a game and placed a virtual board on the tabletop to take turns placing 3D X’s and O’s until someone wins. 

 

 

Try it with a friend yourself by clicking on this link. 

 

With all the excitement going on at the festival, we were sure delegates would want to share their experience. To help them do this, we teamed up with Orb Amsterdam on an AR postcard. Using WebAR powered by 8th Wall, delegates scanned a QR code on a physical postcard to personalize their AR postcard by taking a picture at the festival. They then sent the postcard as a link on social media, email or any popular messaging app. Clicking on the link placed the animated AR postcard in the recipient's world space featuring the adorable yeti, Captain Doty, who is holding the photo taken at the event.

 

 

Finally, as part of this event, we teamed up with decentralized WebAR gallery, Lucify.io, to showcase an NFT AR Exhibition at the Happy Hour curated by NFT agency, Turboslow. Delegates used their smartphones to select from a variety of image and video NFTs to place them on the walls of the Terrace in AR. The exhibit included an exclusive NFT created for Cannes as part of the “Breathe with Me - Earth Air Can” collection and uses the 8th Wall platform to bring all NFTs into the real world using WebAR.

 

 

From scavenger hunts to NFT art shows, 8th Wall was used to transform the Cannes Lions Festival experience to help inspire brands and marketers and advertisers on the opportunity to use AR for their brand.

To get even more inspired on the use of WebAR, check out the hundreds of brand experiences on the 8th Wall Discovery Hub.