Tag: Audi

Augmented Reality Calendar by Audi

An Audi calendar arrives and it looks almost wrong. Each month is a beautiful landscape, with a deliberate empty space and no car in sight. You open Audi’s iPhone app, point the camera at the page, and the missing piece appears. An Audi A1 fills the blank area in augmented reality, sitting inside the printed scene as if it belongs there.

The idea. A car calendar without cars

Audi takes a familiar format. The premium calendar. Then it removes the expected hero asset. The car. The calendar becomes an invitation to discover, not a static brand object.

How it works. Print as trigger, iPhone as lens

  • The printed calendar pages feature landscapes and intentional negative space.
  • People download and open the dedicated Audi iPhone app.
  • They point the phone’s camera at the calendar page.
  • The app overlays a car into the empty area, turning the page into a live scene.

The interaction is simple, but the effect is surprising because it uses a physical artifact as the interface. The calendar is not just content. It is the marker that activates the experience.

Why this works. A tangible product that earns a second look

This is not augmented reality for the sake of augmented reality. It is a clean integration of print and mobile that rewards curiosity. The calendar builds anticipation with absence, and the app completes the story in the moment you engage.

What to take from it. Designing the reveal

  • Use restraint to create intrigue. Removing the obvious element can be more powerful than showcasing it.
  • Make the physical object the trigger. When the real-world asset is the interface, the digital layer feels earned.
  • Keep the action obvious. Point camera. See result. Low friction beats complex onboarding.
  • Build around a single wow moment. One crisp reveal is often enough to make the experience memorable.

This idea is developed by Neue Digitale / Razorfish Berlin and executed for Audi.

A few fast answers before you act

What is Audi’s augmented reality calendar?
A printed Audi calendar designed to work with an iPhone app, where pointing the phone camera at a page reveals a car in augmented reality.

What is the core creative twist?
It is a car calendar without cars. The car appears only when you view the page through the app.

What role does the calendar page play?
It acts as the trigger. The printed layout and empty space are intentionally designed to be “completed” by the AR overlay.

What makes it effective as a brand experience?
It turns a passive object into an interactive reveal, linking print, mobile, and product desire in one simple action.

What is the transferable pattern for other brands?
Design a physical artifact that creates curiosity, then use mobile to deliver a single high-impact reveal with minimal friction.

BMW vs Audi: Jump for Joy

A familiar rivalry, reduced to one simple provocation

Another BMW vs Audi battle. Here you can watch some amazing ways to take a seat in a BMW.

How the idea works once you look past the stunts

The mechanic is built on a tiny human action with a clear frame. Entering the car becomes the entire performance, with the brand as the stage and the seat as the punchline.

In European automotive markets, playful rivalry cues can turn ordinary product moments into highly shareable entertainment without heavy explanation.

Why it lands: competitiveness plus physical comedy

It works because the viewer instantly understands the rules. There is an implied opponent, a familiar status game, and a stream of surprising variations that reward continued watching.

The business intent: own “fun to drive” without saying it

Instead of listing features, the brand borrows emotion. It positions BMW as energetic and confident by making the act of taking a seat feel like part of the driving fantasy.

What to steal for your next brand-versus-brand moment

  • Use a micro-behaviour as the hook. One simple action can carry an entire story if the frame is clear.
  • Let the rivalry do the setup. A known competitor creates instant context without extra copy.
  • Stack variations fast. The replay value comes from “what is the next version” momentum.
  • Make the proposition implicit. Show the feeling the brand wants to own, instead of explaining it.

A few fast answers before you act

What is the core idea of this BMW clip?

It turns the simple act of taking a seat in a BMW into a series of entertaining variations, framed as a playful BMW vs Audi rivalry moment.

How does the mechanic work?

One repeatable action is performed in multiple surprising ways. The audience keeps watching to see the next variation, not to learn features.

Why is brand rivalry effective here?

Because it creates instant stakes and a familiar frame. Viewers immediately understand the “battle” and focus on the execution.

What is the business intent behind this approach?

To reinforce BMW’s energetic, confident brand feel by associating the product with fun and performance, delivered as entertainment rather than claims.

What is the most transferable takeaway?

Choose one product-adjacent behaviour that everyone recognises, then make it repeatable, surprising, and easy to share.