Ogilvy Digital Innovation Lab Launch
Last week on the 31st July, the Digital Innovation Lab was launched in London as the hub of Innovation for the European Group.
The lab is an incubator of innovation that creates, showcases and markets digital innovations. Its a reference point for new technology enabling the creation of new applications, tools and utilities. As an inspiration centre for clients and colleagues it will provide a vital educational facility for next generation brand engagement.
The launch started with the appearance of weird stuff around the offices…when people switched on their screensavers, they saw fuzzy black and white images of a run down server room and pictures of a horrible skull with a countdown timer beneath! Nobody had a clue what was going on…but something was…. 
There were stickers on random doors and windows, a giant poster of the skull in the bar and several days of emails with links to sites which showed CCTV camera coverage of a mad scientist at work. Then – everyone received an email containing a ‘Manifesto’ from some hijackers directing people to tune into the CCTV coverage at 4pm. At that time you could see the hijackers smashing the old lab (and the mad scientist) to pieces!!
At 5pm, the new lab was launched and stacks of people from all over the company turned up to find masses of free beer and a huge room full of the most cutting edge technology. A bunch of mobile handsets showing the best of breed from Blyk to Admob were displayed along the entrance corridor and people swarmed around playing with the new toys!
A 360 degree virtual poster was in the middle of the lab, opposite a (unbelievably realistic) holographic message from OgilvyOne’s CEO.
The bank of iMacs showed the best of online wizardry including IPTV messages from the Vice-Chairman (and dear friend), Rory Sutherland.
The party carried on into the evening and peoples general reaction was ‘WOW!’.
We had presented the bleeding edge of what is possible to the whole company and the lab will continue to refresh and do just that. Inspiring people.
Hat’s off to Mike Dodds, Nicole Yershon (without whom none of this would be possible), Sasha Dunn, Bo Helberg, Giles Rhys Jones and Scott Seaborn who have worked so hard in getting this thing together. Its an honor to have been involved in the launch of this and I look forward to seeing it develop!
The below video is worth checkin’ out:
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