See How Away’s AI-Powered Immersive Experience Inspired IRL Travel

LOS ANGELES—In June, popular travel brand Away took people beyond the boundaries of the physical world via an immersive experience powered by artificial intelligence.

The two-day activation, which was produced by Superfly, transported guests to an AI-generated world, complete with an IRL 3D chrome dreamscape sculpture. “The experiential activation imagined an AI environment that blended the line between reality and fantasy. The clash of rainbow and chromatic mountains was inspired by fantastical places that actually exist in the world, merged with the surreal worlds of AI,” explained Mathew Dillman, creative director at Superfly, about the experience’s design.

The two-day activation featured an IRL 3D chrome sculpture.Photo: Courtesy of SuperflyTo personalize the experience, Superfly designed a series of prompts to “put guests into an emotional journey through sensorial travel-esque scenarios.” Tapping into the five senses, the questionnaire asked visitors to think about food, scents, sounds, landscapes, and destinations, like “​​It’s your favorite restaurant, what do you order?” and “If you could replace all of the grass in the world with something else, what would it be?” With the answers, Superfly was able to generate postcard images of unique places that were designed by emerging digital artist Ulises, who is known for their fantastical, reimagined workspaces and streetscapes.

In addition to the AI-generated dreamscapes, guests also received postcards featuring real-world destinations, highlighting a place that they can actually travel to. “We were intrigued by the idea of AI, but wanted to be thoughtful about our use of it,” Dillman said. “Ultimately, we believe AI has incredible potential to spark curiosity, which we activated in the form of bespoke postcards—each tailored to an individual's ideals and imagination.”

Emerging digital artist Ulises generated unique places on postcards.Photo: Courtesy of AwayThe activation took place at The Brig in Venice, Calif., in part because of the “vibrancy of the Abbot Kinney neighborhood” and its proximity to the Away retail location in Venice, Dillman explained. “The Brig location enabled us to connect with the scores of people making their way through the area and give them a completely unique AI-driven, travel-centric experience with Away.”

Two thousand-plus people visited the activation, with 585 custom AI-generated dreamscapes produced, which translates to folks who walked through the entire user journey of questionnaire, photo moment, and postcard generation. Post-event, guests received an email encouraging them to explore real-world destinations. The activation kicked off the travel brand’s 360-degree marketing campaign dubbed “Extraordinary is out there.”

The activation kicked off the travel brand’s 360-degree marketing campaign dubbed “Extraordinary is out there.”Photo: Courtesy of Superfly

To personalize the experience, Superfly designed a series of prompts to “put guests into an emotional journey through sensorial travel-esque scenarios.” Visitors could answer the questionnaire at on-site booths.Photo: Courtesy of Superfly

Post-event, activation guests received an email encouraging them to explore real-world destinations.Photo: Courtesy of Superfly