Axios set out to create an experience that positioned Boeing as an industry innovator, a community partner and a country-first manufacturer in the race to Space. The challenge: how do you convey the full potential of space exploration — especially across medicine, commerce, and connectivity — to audiences here on earth in an immersive way?

A traditional, 2D event wouldn’t do justice to Boeing’s game-changing advances or showcase the gravity of the technology — it needed to be a 360 degree experience to create true impact.

So Axios conceptualized, designed and produced “To the Future" from the ground up in our signature Smart Brevity format, focused on engineering a content-first experience designed to deliver the smartest, most efficient experience that Axios readers have come to expect from the brand.

By curating a live technology-driven installation, “To the Future” informed guests about space travel and exposed our target audience of policymakers, business leaders’ other influencers to a first of its kind immersive space experience.

This included a custom branded setting that engaged guests in a content-driven journey from Cape Canaveral to the International Space Station to deep space and beyond, all centered on specialized digital moments and interactive tools highlighting how Boeing is changing the game.

Through each phase, guests explored the future of space and why it matters through digital storytelling including: a coordinated vibrating-plus-sound-plus-projection mapped lift-off in America’s First Space Taxi, International Space Station tunnel with a real view from space with a spotlight on Boeing’s unique simulator software for guests experience, and a custom LED infinity room that allowed guests to walk on Mars and step inside the still-being-imagined Deep Space Gateway.

Axios Studios lives and breathes the idea that brands should have a unified strategy for communicating. The team felt the Boeing story – given the gravity, complexity and timeliness of the space conversation – and the saturated schedules of policymakers and government officials, needed to come to life in a setting that:

- Featured compelling, experiential storytelling, rather than a traditional, static advertising format.

- Created an adaptable experience for a variety of different in-room moments, including engagement with military families and 1:1 media interviews.

- Provided the back-drop for curated tours designed to captivate high-level, Washington D.C. decision makers and guarantee engagement.

A live activation – unlike a traditional event or digital campaign – provided a rich platform to reach each of these goals, while generating impossible-to-ignore buzz on Capitol Hill.

- Timed with the launch of Axios 2-year anniversary celebration in January, the process involved 3 months of pre-planning, content planning, design, build and execution in The Showroom in downtown DC, a venue centrally located for accessibility by our audience.

- The experience lived in The Showroom for three weeks, beginning on January 30th and closing out on February 14th.

- Axios employed Advoc8, a cross-functional experience agency, to support the management of two different vendors for the build-out and technology. The Axios Studio team, comprised of events, marketing and video professionals, served as the nucleus for script and content creation while providing management and direction for vendors involved.

- Axios worked closely with Boeing’s communication and legislative affairs teams, who provided the bare bones of messaging and space video + photo assets for Axios to transform into signature Axios-style branded content.

We were able to capture the undivided attention of a diverse array of key client stakeholders over the course of 3-weeks with over 200 tours and a high-profile VVIP launch party. This audience included White House officials, over 140 Congressional staffers, the NASA communications team, eight embassies, Think Tanks and non-profit STEM professionals. Notably, ‘To the Future’ hosted two military family events dedicated to sharing the experience with individuals closest to their defense work.

Throughout the two-week installation, Boeing was also able to reach nearly 2,000 stakeholders including suppliers, clients (NASA and government agencies) and regulators.