Hundreds of drones took over Shanghai’s night sky on Saturday with a light show that ended with a giant QR code, a symbol of China’s booming digital economy and consumerism. The QR code is ubiquitous across China, used for everything from adding friends on messaging apps to paying for groceries at markets, ordering at restaurants, and even giving to panhandlers.
The illuminated QR code, effectively a billboard advertisement in the air, was part of a light show put on by Chinese video-streaming company Bilibili on the first anniversary of the China release of the Japanese role-playing game Princess Connect! Re:Dive. A photo of it went viral on Twitter on Sunday, prompting reactions ranging from amazement to disgust.
Some critics compared it to the ad-filled world of Blade Runner 2049, where massive holographic advertisements compete for people’s attention and constantly nudge them to buy and consume more. In the show, staged above Shanghai’s scenic waterfront promenade, the Bund, 1,500 illuminated drones formed into the game’s logo and characters before transforming into a floating QR code that links to its homepage.
https://www.vice.com/en/article/88n9vb/shanghai-drone-show-qr-code
