Invesco QQQ ETF releases Augmented Reality experience powered by 8th Wall for its NCAA basketball campaign

In Augmented Reality News 

March 19, 2021 – Invesco QQQ ETF, the official ETF (​exchange-traded fund) of the NCAA men’s college basketball championship (also referred to as ‘March Madness’), has announced that it has launched an augmented reality (AR) experience with NBA legend Grant Hill.

The ‘QQQ Hoops AR’ experience allows users to bring an AR basketball hoop into their living rooms through their smartphones, where they can swipe to shoot. As Invesco is an investment management firm, all players start with $10,000 of in-game currency, and they have 30 seconds to make as many baskets as they can, which in turn nets them an additional dollars.

At the end of the 30 seconds, users are presented with the total digital currency that they earned, along with how much that amount would have been worth if it was invested through Invesco QQQ ETF 10 years ago.

The QQQ Hoops AR is a web-based augmented reality (WebAR) experience that works in a web-browser on iOS and Android smartphones with no app required to download. The experience was created by COFFEE Labs and is powered by 8th Wall technology – particularly 8th Wall’s proprietary ‘World Tracking AR’ technology. Which allows for the placement of the basketball net and a hologram of Grant Hill in the user’s physical world space using a smartphone.

Commenting on the campaign, Erik Murphy-Chutorian, Founder & CEO of 8th Wall, said: “Invesco QQQ Hoops is a fantastic example of how augmented reality can engage sports fans wherever they are.” He added, “We are thrilled that COFFEE Labs used 8th Wall to create a web-based augmented reality gaming experience which requires no app to download making it possible for even more fans to play.”

To create the hologram of Grant Hill, green screen video technology was used. COFFEE Labs then added lighting estimation and shadows to the green screen video in WebAR to add an additional layer of realism to the experience.

“COFFEE Labs was thrilled to partner with Invesco to deliver this interactive WebAR experience. This browser based Augmented Reality game was the perfect platform to reach fans during March Madness and showcase the innovation of Invesco QQQ ETF. COFFEE will continue to push the limits of what’s possible to connect with consumers in unique ways. said Al Silvestri, Partner and Chief Creative Officer of COFFEE Labs“ 

Invesco QQQ ETF has made the AR experience central to its NCAA campaign which also features full-page takeovers, digital and social ads and jumbotron messaging in-stadium with QR codes that fans can scan to play the AR game. For more information on the company, please click here.

For more information on COFFEE Labs and its immersive experiences, please click here. on 8th Wall and its WebAR platform, please visit the company’s website.

Video credit: Coffee Digital / YouTube

About the author

Sam Sprigg

Sam is the Founder and Managing Editor of Auganix. With a background in research and report writing, he has been covering XR industry news for the past seven years.