Interactive Storytelling for an AI-Powered Energy Solution
3 min read
Project Summary
E.ON, one of the largest European energy companies, needed a way to help customers and internal teams quickly grasp the real-world benefits of their energy management platform ectocloudᵀᴹ – how it saves money, maximises energy efficiency and supports sustainability. They approached our team to design a storytelling concept and an interactive experience that translated complex information into a clear, hands-on journey.
Result
Interactive Demo Platform
Contributions
Concept Development
UX/UI Design
3D Motion Design
Project Management
Client Communication
Timeline
3 months
Team
Developer
Designer (myself✌️)
Business Need
Turning Advanced Technology into Tangible Stories for Wider Audiences
E.ON is one of Europe’s largest energy companies, running multiple energy projects across markets. Internally, teams need to constantly educate each other, while externally they must present these projects to customers, ranging from highly technical stakeholders to business-oriented decision makers.
One such project is ectocloudᵀᴹ, the AI-driven digital platform behind E.ON’s decentralized heating and cooling network ectogridᵀᴹ. ectocloudᵀᴹ uses ML and real-time data to optimize energy flows and integrate renewable sources.
The platform is powerful, but hard to explain. E.ON needed an engaging way to communicate the value of the platform.
Research & Insights
Understanding User Needs to Shape the Demo Experience
Our work began with a workshop the E.ON team who would use our solution in their day-to-day work.
The aim was to:
• Understand E.ON's teams' pain points and needs when presenting ectocloudᵀᴹ;
• Map different target audiences (internal teams, technical customers, business customers) along with their goals and expertise.
Workshop Insights:
• The story needed to balance complexity and be clear for business people but credible for technical experts;
• Current tools (ectocloudᵀᴹ UI, PowerPoint) weren’t effective for either 1-1 meetings or larger conferences, and couldn't fully reflect the capabilities of the ectocloudᵀᴹ platform.
These insights informed the structure of the demo. Format and usability were driven by internal team needs; content and narrative were shaped by external audience needs.
Storytelling Flow of the Experience
Concept Development
Gamified & Interactive Storytelling in 3D
Taking inspiration from companies that faced similar challenges (e.g., Google’s interactive demo) I proposed a gamified and interactive storytelling approach. Instead of explaining algorithms directly, the tool would simulate a city and its everyday energy challenges that the audience was invited to overcome.
I created a 3D city scene with residential areas, factories, solar panels, and the rest of the infrastructure. In six chapters, the city faced scenarios such as a sudden cold storm that increased heating demand and energy prices. Each chapter illustrated the problem visually, then showed how ectocloudᵀᴹ solved it.
For technical audiences, a “How it Works” button revealed overlays with detailed explanations. Presenters could choose to follow the story linearly or skip between chapters depending on the context.
How ectocloudᵀᴹ Solves the Challenge — Animation and UI Example
Design Production
Defining, Designing, and Delivering the Experience
My responsibility was to create the narrative, design the UX/UI of the experience and work closely with the developer. To bring the concept to life, I also developed the animated 3D city in Spline. Learning the tool from scratch was challenging, but the result made the demo more relatable and engaging than traditional slides.
I also managed the project: coordinating with the client, managing feedback loops, and keeping delivery on track. To support adoption, I designed a user manual and a presentation script alongside the demo.
UI Showing Deeper Technical Level of the Solution
Result
Turning Complexity into a Tangible, Engaging Experience
The demo turned communicating the ectocloudᵀᴹ platform into an engaging, gamified storytelling experience. This gave E.ON a flexible way to communicate the platform’s value and resonate with both internal teams, business and technical customers.
Learnings
Balancing Curiosity with Efficiency
Pushing beyond my skill set (working with 3D) added value to the final outcome, but also added unexpected time spendings. They were still within the overall project’s budget, but I needed to re-prioritise other deliverables to the client.
This experience taught me when to delegate. Even though I enjoy learning new tools, today I would either incorporate content creation AI or outsource the task to a 3D motion specialist.
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Contacts
v.dzhekanovich@gmail.com