Amazon, Dolby and Panasonic are among 10 multinationals using a new AI app to measure and reduce carbon emissions at trade shows.
Trade Show Impact Manager (TIM) allows users to photograph their booth and receive a carbon footprint estimate in 30 seconds. The app has been trained on data from thousands of expo booths.
TIM was created by Nick Marks, founder of innovation hub Pie Factory, and CTO Zak Homuth, who previously founded Upverter and held senior roles at Altium and Sheertex.
The tool addresses what Pie Factory calls the “build and burn” problem where exhibition stands are constructed for single use then discarded. The company’s data suggests the typical expo emits 40 times more carbon than the average music festival.
The issue has sparked controversy in Japan, where the architect of the Great Ring, the largest wooden structure on Earth and centre piece of the Osaka Expo, claims most of it will be burned as wood chips. Event organisers dispute the claim.
Nick Marks, said: “Since the days of the World’s Fair and their ‘ghost attractions’, expos have left behind a trail of waste and abandonment. Our app allows the people who host events and the people who exhibit at them to get quick, clear and comprehensive read-outs of their carbon footprint. Responsible companies, the ones that care about their legacy as much as their immediate prospects, will welcome this.”
