Dyson ties with Amazon’s Twitch to recruit the innovators of the future
In order to find and shape the next generation of engineering talent, Dyson is deviating from the tried and tested university tours to erect a pop-up challenge only the sharpest minds can solve. And to reach beyond those who take part, the brand has partnered with Amazon’s Twitch.
It’s a change in strategy that shows just how much importance Dyson is placing on recruitment in its bid to have its products and more importantly its brand at the crux of connected living. Some 110 software engineers are being recruited worldwide to try and make it happen, and in London it partnered with Livity to create a pop-up with a difference.
Dubbed Smart Rooms, players progress from one themed room to next once they’ve completed a raft of Crystal Maze-style challenges that represent one of four different rooms in the home. Each challenge is projected onto a wall, meaning players progress virtually rather than physically moving locations once they solve a puzzle.
Given the difficulty of the challenges, those inside the room can ask the Twitch audience for help by placing objects or words under four spot lights. Those viewers watching the Twitch stream can vote on which light is the correct answer, which will be hashtagged #SmartRooms in order to collate the information.
Interestingly, Dyson is moving into a relatively untapped space on Twitch despite it being owned Amazon. As per recent numbers from the company, it has over two million creators on the network and 100 million monthly views. What’s more those viewers spend more than 1.5 hours per on it and that looks set to rise as the platform chases audiences beyond just gamers.
With numbers like that, it’s clear why some observers have dubbed it the “sleeping giant of online media”, while advertisers such as Procter & Gamble, Red Bull, Pizza Hut and more have tested it out with smaller campaigns. For Dyson, a platform like Twitch takes it to an audience it would have otherwise not have reached or at least not at the same scale as it what can do through Smart Rooms.
“Dyson’s ambitions are enormous. The Smart Rooms have been designed to reward those willing to relentlessly question convention, to find new solutions for everyday problems. Only the bold need apply,” said Max Conze, Dyson’s chief executive.
Smart Rooms follows on from Dyson’s challenge, which was also devised in partnership with Livity, and saw it released exclusively on Reddit a day early in order to reach the most influential participants.
The business, which is inextricably tied to its hoover product, wants people to think about other inventions when they hear the Dyson name. By betting on the connected home, the business is looking to tap into trends that can put its products into the everyday lives of people.