Based in Sweden, Teenage Engineering serves as a studio composed of artists, musicians, and engineers collaborating under a shared mission: “To create products of superior quality, functional design, and top-class engineering.” Director and CEO Jesper Kouthoofd leads the small, tightly-knit team in the creation and manufacture of gadgets, instruments, and art installations that market client brands to worldwide audiences in innovative ways. Over the years, their projects for Ericsson, IKEA, New Balance, and more have earned international acclaim not only for originality, but also for reliability, elegant design, and user-friendly interfaces.

Ericsson’s Big Cheer Machine

To help promote the 2010 World Cup, Teenage Engineering was recruited to create an interactive machine that would allow fans all over the world to participate in the camaraderie and team pride inspired by the event. The idea was simple, yet whimsical: a giant, glass box rigged with colorful ribbons, capable of receiving messages from all over the world via Twitter, text, or web browser.

Upon receiving these transmitted messages, or “cheers,” the machine would print them out on the colorful ribbons, then cut the ribbons to confetti which would be sprayed into the glass box. Whenever a team scored a goal, the machine would celebrate with a real-time display of light, sound, and dancing ribbon pieces. At the end of the games, the confetti was divided into smaller, glass boxes, which were then distributed to participating nations all over the world. The project did much to garner additional attention for the World Cup, allowing fans to still feel immersed in the event regardless of their location.

The Knappa Camera for IKEA

Continuing on the theme of global interconnectedness, the team at Teenage Engineering developed the world’s cheapest, working cardboard camera for an interactive promotion for IKEA. Lightweight and easy to use, the device allows IKEA customers to photograph their own home designs and furnishings, then upload the images to the store’s website. Through the interface, IKEA customers all over the world are able to not only share their favorite ideas for home decor, but to also draw insight and inspiration from fellow shoppers across the globe.

The Absolut Choir

When Absolut Vodka decided to take its fine arts-driven campaign into the realm of interactive, three-dimensional art, the company commissioned Teenage Engineering to develop a touring installation that would allow for worldwide, remote participation. Jesper Kouthoofd and his team came up with a robotic choir of synthesized voices controlled by artificial intelligence.

With 22 singing dolls ranging from four inches to well over six feet, the machine was designed to receive commands in the form of lyrics input by everyday internet users from all over the world. By analyzing the phonetics of the provided words, along with themes and messages from recent users, the machine would come up with a melody for the command lyrics, develop harmonies and variations, and “sing” them for audiences near and far. The project earned Teenage Engineering international acclaim while furthering Absolut’s reputation as a brand associated with high culture and artistic innovation.

A New Approach For Branded Content

The team at Teenage Engineering has done much to drive branded content in bold, new directions. Through their work, they have proven time and again that one does not have to rely solely on commercials to draw an audience. Their innovative approach seamlessly combines marketing with high-concept art, taking the field of advertising in a bold, new direction. For instance, their digital synthesizer, the OP-1, was prominently featured in the music video for One by Swedish House Mafia. The keyboard served as a central focal point for the video, providing a striking visual aesthetic while simultaneously fostering powerful brand recognition. Such dichotomies are the hallmark of this trailblazing studio.

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