Most new routes generate a press release. This one created a meeting at the UN.

We launched BA's new SF to London route by assembling the greatest minds in tech at 30,000 feet, and then we aimed even higher.

90+ News stories
generated

225M Readers
reached

11,000+ Organic online
mentions

2 UN initiatives
advanced

The Hack

The Ungrounded Hackathon — what innovation looks like 5½ miles above the Earth.

100 tech leaders. No wifi. No texts. No early exits. They were tasked with tackling four major global issues with a UN presentation just hours away and the clock ticking. Overhead bins became easels. Aisles became breakout rooms. Emergency exits were corner offices.

But this all began well before takeoff. Let's get back to earth, a few months before.

In the Beginning

We had an audience that didn't watch ads; they built things that skip them.

Our target was Silicon Valley's tech innovators — the hardest audience to reach, bar none. Studies show they're 12x less likely to engage with an ad. So we decided not to make ads. Instead, our brief was: "How do we show we value innovation as much as they do?"

A figure in a black t-shirt that reads 'I don't care and you can't make me' seated in a coworking space.

The Opt In

Launching the idea before the wheels started moving.

UngroundedThinking.com was the attention-grabbing buzz generator. To get a seat on the inaugural flight, you had to make your case and convince your peers to vote you onboard. We pushed the site out with help from TechCrunch and Mashable, at industry events, and even Google Hangouts.

UngroundedThinking.com — period microsite where applicants made their case for a seat on the inaugural flight.

The Cast

The minds onboard were mind-blowing.

The list of people vying for spots was a bucket list of names anyone would love to grab five minutes with. Those who got a seat collaborated with them for 10 hours. By attracting tech all-stars, we not only generated press — we made every seat extremely valuable.

Hover any face to play "do you know who this is?"

Van Jones Author, Journalist, Lawyer, Non-Profit Activist

Megan Smith, VP at Google[x] — Megan Smith VP, Google[x]

Tiffany Shlain, Founder of Webby Awards and The Moxie Institute — Tiffany Shlain Founder, Webby Awards & The Moxie Institute

Kimberly Bryant, Founder of Black Girls Code — Kimberly Bryant Founder/Executive Director, Black Girls Code

Todd Lutwak, Partner at Andreessen Horowitz — Todd Lutwak Partner, Andreessen Horowitz

Duncan Logan, Founder and CEO of RocketSpace — Duncan Logan Founder/CEO, RocketSpace

Michael Chui, Senior Fellow at McKinsey — Michael Chui Senior Fellow, McKinsey

Craig Newmark, Founder of Craigslist — Craig Newmark Founder, Craigslist

whurley, Co-Founder of Chaotic Moon — whurley Co-Founder, Chaotic Moon

Gina Bianchini, Founder and CEO of Mightybell and LeanIn.org — Gina Bianchini Founder/CEO, Mightybell + LeanIn.org

Claudia Fan Munce, Managing Director at IBM Venture Capital Group — Claudia Fan Munce Managing Director, IBM Venture Capital Group

Ben Rattray, Founder and CEO of Change.org — Ben Rattray Founder/CEO, Change.org

The G8 UK 2013 Innovation Conference hall — the Ungrounded teams about to present.

The Landing

Grab your luggage, the world is waiting.

Four teams got off the plane at Heathrow and went straight to the G8 Innovation Conference. No sleep. No second drafts. Just whatever they'd sketched at 30,000 feet — and a room full of global leaders waiting to hear what they had to say.

The two ideas the UN greenlit.

BeaconPack pilot launch in Nsuta-Aweregya, Ghana — schoolchildren outside the schoolhouse.

Beacons in a Backpack

A school in Ghana came online.

Rugged, solar-powered Wi-Fi hubs built on Raspberry Pi to bring connectivity to remote communities. The pilot launched in Nsuta-Aweregya, Ghana shortly after the summit.

AdvisHer

Women in STEM. Mentors without borders.

Selected by Dr. Hamadoun I. Touré, Secretary-General of the UN's ITU, as a flagship investment — a platform connecting women in STEM with mentors across borders, powered by the Girls and ICT initiative.

Earned media