With Unfolding Timbaland, Verizon invited users to become Timbaland’s latest collaborator via groundbreaking tech. By using a custom-built music composing AI, we challenged traditional ideas of what a brand-consumer conversation looks like on social. Rethinking the modes of making a meaningful connection online, we were able to create a new way for users to connect with a brand, creative medium, and each other.

Samsung launched the next generation of the Galaxy Z Fold and the Galaxy Z Flip in mid-Q3 2021. We were tasked with creating a unified campaign for both form factors, including value props of entertainment (primary) and 5G Ultra Wideband superiority (secondary). Although the foldable segment of the category was still relatively new, and that newness was not to be taken for granted, we were tasked to emphasize how these form factors accentuated Verizon’s entertainment and network use cases.

Awareness and familiarity were the #1 barriers to consideration—only 36% of buyers were aware of Galaxy Z devices, compared to 90% for S Series and 68% for Note. Undefined value was another obstacle—online and in-store experiences did not adequately communicate the uniqueness, durability, or productivity of these devices, and over 33% of buyers felt they didn’t have enough info to make a purchase decision.

With over 600 new mobile device launches every year, how does one stand out from the crowd? For the launch of the flexible, foldable Samsung Galaxy Z Series, we partnered with multi-platinum hitmaker Timbaland to remix the idea of a typical phone launch.

To show how the Samsung Galaxy Z Series’ innovative form factor remixes your online life, we had the iconic producer write an original track designed to be remixed infinitely. We then built music-composing AI, trained it on Timbaland’s biggest hits, and used machine learning to teach it to ingest, interpolate, and synthesize. Then we gave our beatmaking bot the keys to Verizon’s Twitter account.

6/8: Project Kickoff

6/21: Concept Approval

6/28: Talent Locked

7/7-7/9 Shoot

7/10: AI Bot Kickoff

7/26 - 8/6: AI Soft Launch, bot learning period

9/9-8/10: Final Approvals

Launch, Campaign Period 8/11 - 8/26

The experience finds its magic in personalization and context. With music created by an artist tailored to the individual, Unfolding Timbaland uses a combination of public data, dynamic video, and artificial intelligence to produce a unique song for each user.

User flow:

1. Audience wishes to create (retweets @Verizon)

2. The bot pulls available data and username to begin the song generation cue.

3. Two main systems parse the data. A dynamic video system (Imposium) has a preset cut to include personalized elements of video—i.e., when Timbaland looks at his phone, the Twitter user’s profile appears on screen, DMing to collaborate. And an AI audio system uses two different algorithms to create a unique version of the song that features a more personalized bridge.

4. The server pairs the user’s audio and video to export a single tweet with the video embedded, then tweets at the original user who requested the song.

We brought Verizon and the Samsung Galaxy Z Series to top of mind, garnering 97% positive sentiment, #1 share of conversation for the first 48 hours, 6K+ custom remixes, and 99.6% of all mentions on @SamsungMobileUS at launch. We showed the world that the possibilities are truly endless when you’re using a Samsung Z Series device on Verizon 5G.