Recognising the need for meaningful brand-customer interactions, ZeroLight, Audi, and Amazon Web Services (AWS) have collaborated on an intelligent and connected showcase of retail experiences for the new Audi e-tron. Through machine learning (ML), each experience will be able to assess the requirements of individual customers and provide feedback in line with their potential needs. The result automates personalisation at scale, facilitating conversion through relevant recommendations.

The demonstration will be available for the first time at CES 2019, allowing delegates to participate in a uniquely tailored car buying journey, from initial interest to car ownership. The installation will be split into three sections, starting in the home, moving to the dealership and ending with the vehicle itself. Each stage of the demonstration will be tailored based on aggregated user data to deliver a personalized consumer-centric experience.

"We've refined the connected customer journey concept delivered last year so that it optimises to the individual. Now all online and offline communications take the needs of the customer into account, ensuring every interaction with the brand has value and every recommendation to the customer has context," said Francois de Bodinat, Chief Marketing Officer, ZeroLight.

At the home stage, delegates will receive a personalised ad based on their persona. The ad directs them to an Audi e-tron microsite featuring a revised version of the Audi-ZeroLight interactive 3D configurator, powered by Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) instances. Interactions with the configurator are interpreted in real-time by the machine learning tool to predict and suggest the most relevant next best action. As a result, delegates will receive the full value of the experience available to them at the right time. Once configuration is complete, everyone will be able to see their car in AR and book through the dealership.

The Audi e-tron spearheads a new generation of vehicles within our stable and is the result of relentless innovation. It's important that our partners share the same philosophy and explore new avenues in the pursuit of a better customer experience. We're looking forward to seeing how people react to this concept and the associated benefits machine learning could have on what is already pioneering technology,

_{Thomas Orenz, Audi Visualisation Engine, Digital Content and Virtual Reality, Audi AG.}

Upon entering the dealership, delegates will be able to load their personalised vehicle and refine their configuration using a high-quality power wall. Meanwhile, the dealer will gain ML-based insights into the customer's interests alongside upsell suggestions tailored to the current customer. With such information, dealers can optimise their service to create meaningful conversations around bespoke needs. Once complete, dealers can leverage the ZeroLight platform to create custom sales materials around the customer's configuration, such as microsites, brochures or videos.

Finally, the showcase will demonstrate how the user's profile, stored securely on AWS, could also be uploaded to the car upon entry, with all entertainment and customisation preferences reflected in the vehicle, to personalize the experience.

Now, 25 territories have access to the revolutionary Audi-ZeroLight real-time 3D web configurator, delivering a truly premium online experience for Audi customers. By taking the same technology and applying AWS's ML services for this CES showcase, ZeroLight aims to drive consistency and ensure that more customers gain the beneficial experience that has driven positive results to date.

Contact
Jack Nove
Marketing Executive, ZeroLight
T: +44(0) 191 485 0505
E: jack.nove@zerolight.com

About ZeroLight
ZeroLight is the market-leading omnichannel visualisation platform for the automotive industry. Pioneering real-time 3D solutions for retail, online and asset creation, ZeroLight empowers OEMs to sell smarter and engage customers with interactive product experiences that enhance the buying process. For more information about the company, go to zerolight.com