DC Comics and its parent company, WarnerMedia, partnered with Ally Financial to launch Milestone ARchives.

Milestone Media was created to put more minorities in comic books. It has evolved into Black Star Collectibles, which is the first Black-owned pop culture collectibles store in Carson, CA.

Milestone ARchives, an experiential activation using augmented reality (AR) experience, allowed South by Southwest (SXSW) attendees to virtually meet and interact with superheroes Static, Hardware, and those from Icon & Rocket, to reach a younger audience using a popular social media app that their generation is more familiar with. It brought in-person experiences with AR via Snapchat, so visitors at the SXSW pop-up could use the social media app to explore the characters’ backstories through filters and interactive games.

The activation was part of a broader creator-focused initiative among DC Comics, WarnerMedia, and Ally, to train and create opportunities for Black and diverse storytellers in the comic industry, while it also marked a greater focus on creators for Ally. The financial company previously produced several mobile marketing efforts that utilized AR and creators.