B2B & Industry

AI vehicle staging and test-drive leads at the IAA for a car manufacturer

A global car manufacturer (OEM) wanted to present its newest model interactively at IAA Mobility — without giving up valuable indoor stand space for the physical vehicle. UpReach supplied a 2D-to-3D AI installation: trade visitors are removed from the show background in real time and integrated photorealistically next to the new vehicle model on a virtual race track. The generated image looks like a press photo. The price for the download: name, email and the "interested in a test drive" checkbox — GDPR-safe, segmented hot leads for sales.

More than 200 B2B brands from across Europe trust UpReach — from agencies to enterprise corporations.

The initial situation

The OEM wanted to promote its new EV model interactively but had no room for the physical vehicle on the indoor stand. The classic solution — a greenscreen studio — was not logistically viable on the cramped show floor and not premium enough visually.

The compliance requirements from the legal department were precise: consent at the terminal before every capture, an agreed data processing agreement with a defined deletion concept, an unbroken SSL-encrypted path and a legally watertight opt-in for the test-drive request. For this event, offline mode was also booked for the AI processing. Standard consumer solutions did not pass this audit.

The quality requirement for the output: the generated image had to resemble a real press photo — photorealistic, not like a compositing screenshot. Only then do visitors share the image on LinkedIn and Instagram.

The UpReach solution

UpReach installed a CE-certified Pro V1 terminal, fully wrapped in the OEM's corporate design — no UpReach branding visible on the outside. The AI used removed the greenscreen entirely.

The 2D-to-3D AI cut the visitor out of the show background in real time and integrated them photorealistically next to the vehicle model on a virtual race track using complex depth effects. In the booked offline mode, the AI computation ran directly on the terminal, independent of the show Wi-Fi. Capture only took place after consent at the terminal; processing was GDPR-compliant and governed by a defined deletion concept.

The download flow was designed as a qualified data gate: name, email, and the decisive sales-qualification checkbox "interested in a test drive" (GDPR opt-in). The cloud CMS exported the leads, segmented by test-drive interest, into the OEM's marketing automation via REST API.

Setup & Logistics

Lead time six weeks: three weeks for AI configuration (calibrating the 2D-to-3D depth effects to the specific vehicle model, producing the virtual race-track environment, testing the photorealistic compositing), one week for UI design and CI adaptation (terminal wrap in the OEM corporate design), one week for compliance review by the OEM's data protection officers (DPA, deletion concept, consent flow), one week for camera calibration to the light conditions of the IAA halls and end-to-end testing of the lead export.

Transport in a flight case. Set-up by an UpReach technician. On-site support for the entire show. Leads flowed into the OEM's marketing automation in real time via REST API.

Dismantling and return transport on the final show day.

Results by the numbers

Hundreds

qualified test-drive leads

0 m²

of stand space for vehicle display

100 %

consent at the terminal before capture

The virtual vehicle integration delivered the OEM the thing that mattered most: test-drive leads that were already qualified before the first sales conversation. The checkbox in the data gate — "interested in a test drive: yes/no" — separated hot leads from general contacts. The OEM's marketing automation tool received a pre-sorted dataset.

The generated images — photorealistic, with the new model on a race track — were shared on LinkedIn and Instagram. The vehicle was always staged in the corporate design and in the defined context. No uncontrolled filters, no loss of quality.

The compliance review by the OEM's legal department was passed: consent at the terminal before every capture, a defined deletion concept, an SSL-encrypted data pipeline, a GDPR-compliant DPA. The terminal was audit-safe.

Key takeaways from this setup

AI beats greenscreen: physical greenscreens look dated and error-prone at B2B trade shows. The 2D-to-3D AI delivers better depth effects, needs no space and is ready to use instantly.

Qualification in the download flow: a generic email list is worthless for sales. The test-drive checkbox directly in the data gate delivers qualified hot leads — not only after the follow-up call.

GDPR compliance is a precondition: automotive groups require consent at the terminal, an agreed DPA and a documented deletion concept. For sensitive events, offline mode for the AI processing can also be booked.

High-quality images raise the share value: a photorealistic press-photo composite gets shared on LinkedIn. A poor greenscreen composite does not. The quality of the AI output correlates directly with the earned-media value.