UFI, the global association of the exhibition industry, has named Italian Exhibition Group (IEG) as the winner of the 2025 UFI Digital Innovation Award. It is an award that celebrates strategies that showcase how technology can significantly impact trade show performance and how these innovations can benefit the entire industry.
This year’s UFI Digital Innovation Award topic was ‘Driving change through digital innovation – How has your organisation used digital innovation to transform processes, improve customer experiences, or create new opportunities in the exhibition industry?’
The topic aimed to showcase innovative strategies that demonstrate how companies are using technology to deliver measurable impact on a trade show or organisation’s performance. IEG won with its ‘All-in-one ecosystem’ entry.
IEG CEO, Corrado Peraboni (pictured) said: “This achievement strengthens our determination to create increasingly smart and connected experiences for our customers and stakeholders, in line with our mission: to be a Community Catalyst.”
The integrated technology ecosystem, developed by IEG’s Innovation area headed by Simone Zaccherini is able to radically transform the trade show experience by using artificial intelligence, automation and unified data management. The core objective of the system is to simplify interaction between exhibitors, visitors and organisers: from registration to post-event content usage through a new mobile app and an omnichannel platform that ensures continuity of experience across all touchpoints. The adoption of AI also enables user itinerary personalisation and improved engagement and service effectiveness, with a significant impact on exhibition performance.
Stephan Forseilles, chair of the UFI Digital Innovation Working Group, added: “Italian Exhibition Group’s submission blew me away because it really is (and it’s not a word I use lightly) transformative. Their project is not just the implementation of a new application or feature; it’s a complete rethink of their ecosystem using the best and most modern tools available.
“While breaking the silos of data, they really made their company ready for the future by providing a foundational technology stack that enables a better user experience, that is more secure, more scalable, more efficient, and puts them in a very good position to embrace AI. They didn’t go for the ‘quick win’, but they put in all the work to make things the right way.”
The jury also acknowledged finalists ReedPop (RX Global) and Royal Jaarbeurs, as well as the following runner-ups as Best Practices:
- Consumer Technology Association, producer of CES®: ‘The Official CES 2025 Show App’
- Messe Munchen: ‘API Democratisation – GRACE’
- OCTANORM: ‘OCTANORM AI Booth Designer’
- RX Global: ‘RX Exhibitor Dashboard: Transforming event success with data analytics’
- RX Global: ‘RX High Value Visitor Platform Rebuild for IBTM World’
- World Trade Center Metro Manila: ‘WTCMM Connect: Transforming Exhibitions with Smart Digital Ecosystems’
The UFI Digital Innovation Award is one of UFI’s annual Award categories, recognising and rewarding successful results-oriented initiatives in the exhibition industry. These awards celebrate excellence in areas ranging from human resources and digital innovation to marketing and sustainable development. More information on the UFI Awards is available at www.ufi.org/awards.
The 2025 UFI Award winners will be officially celebrated and will present their projects at the 92nd UFI Global Congress, which will take place 19-22, in November 2025 in Hong Kong SAR. For more details, visit: www.uficongress.org.
Source: www.exhibitionworld.co.uk
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