One Event After Another: How Luftschloss's AI Portal Became a Product
By Marius Rieg · · 4 min read
Summary: Luftschloss's AI Portal has been used this year at design and real estate trade fairs, in a stadium, and at a music event. On top of that come the first portals sold to economic development agencies and retail, meaning permanent rather than time-limited use. A personal overview of the projects, the upcoming dates, what's behind it, and which questions we have to take seriously along the way.
When we started making artificial intelligence directly tangible for people, it was an idea. Today the Portal, our interactive AI photo screen at Luftschloss, is one of the most requested products we offer. The past months have been shaped by events, very different clients, and varied places of use. No sooner is one date done than the next is up. This post is an overview, not an ad: what happened, what's coming, and what I think matters about it.
From Milan to Munich to the stadium
This year the Portal stood in very different places. At the Salone del Mobile in Milan, one of the world's most important design and furniture fairs. At EXPO REAL in Munich, where together with the Nordschwarzwald economic development agency we presented the region on the Baden-Württemberg International joint stand. There was heavy demand for three days. Visitors had themselves placed into individual image worlds and took their souvenir photo with them right away. In our impression the area was among the biggest crowd magnets on the joint stand, though that's an impression on the ground and not a measurement. What remains are countless images, contacts, and conversations.
The Portal has also arrived in sports. At Werder Bremen it combines football, fan experience, and AI into an interactive experience, as I described after the legends match for the stadium's 100th anniversary. Quite different was the deployment at a large DJ event by the Ludwigsburg-Kornwestheim municipal utilities: here the shared experience was the focus, and visitors staged themselves in unusual image worlds. International trade fair, football stadium, music event: the basic principle stays the same, the experience world is different each time.
What's coming next
In November, a deployment at FC Bayern München and electronica in Munich are on the schedule. On top of that come business days, Christmas markets, events at outlet centers, and further inquiries from various industries. For the coming year, real estate trade fairs are taking shape, where we want to present properties, locations, and regions interactively. The range runs from emotional fan experiences through brand staging to presenting business locations.
More than a trade fair highlight
For me, the most interesting development is a different one: the Portal is no longer booked only for individual events. We have already sold portals to economic development agencies and to retail companies. That creates permanent uses alongside time-limited events.
In city marketing and regional economic development, I see great potential. Instead of classic advertising messages, visitors can become part of a region themselves, discover sights, or find themselves in individually designed motifs. In retail, seasonal campaigns, product worlds, or promotions can be implemented right at the point of sale, which creates attention and gives people an extra reason to visit a store or shopping center. Outlet centers, malls, and event spaces come into question for Christmas promotions and year-round installations.
How the Portal works
The concept is simple: visitors step in front of the camera, get photographed, and moments later find themselves in an AI-generated image world, for example as a football pro in a stadium, on a journey through a region, or as the lead character of a brand campaign. The images can be shared digitally or printed on the spot. For each client we develop a dedicated experience, with motifs, visual language, branding, and technical implementation tailored to the event and audience. It's not an ordinary photo booth for that reason.
Why it works, and which questions remain open
At trade fairs and events, everything competes for attention. The Portal needs no lengthy explanation: people get curious, stop, try it out, and show their result to others. Conversations start that way. Everyone takes something personal with them, not a flyer or an arbitrary giveaway, but an image that stays tied to a brand, an event, or a place.
Because we process images of people and produce AI-generated motifs, though, there are also questions that have to be answered for any installation of this kind: visitor consent, handling of the recordings, and labeling of the generated images. With permanent installations at economic development agencies and in retail they become more important, because there nobody keeps an event frame in mind anymore. Anyone buying such a system should ask them before the purchase.
And 2027?
In my impression the potential isn't exhausted yet. We're working on new features, image worlds, and uses, and interest is growing from various industries: real estate, tourism, city marketing, retail, sports, industry, and event organizers. A technological idea has become a product that finds its place at trade fairs, in the stadium, and increasingly in the everyday work of companies and institutions. With the number of projects ahead, Luftschloss certainly won't be boring.
More about the Portal is on the Luftschloss Portal page.