RENAULT | UN.PATENT | 2025
Teaching rivals how to put out the fire / RENAULT "UN.PATENT"
Renault opened up its patent for extinguishing electric vehicle fires for free, even to rival manufacturers. Instead of locking the technology away, as companies usually do, they let the whole thing go.
The problem
Putting out electric vehicle battery fires has long been difficult, and even dousing them with water could take hours to fully extinguish the flames. This new technology is said to cut that time down to under 10 minutes. As the EV market grows worldwide, safety performance itself had started to become just another thing automakers compete over.
The insight
Renault took the position that competition between manufacturers should never come at the cost of safety. Judge Wendy Walker praised the boldness and solid execution behind the idea, as well as its genuinely creative spirit, rare for B2B work. Above all, she valued the fact that the campaign was built on a universal insight that anyone could relate to. Because it's rooted in a plain, human instinct rather than clever reasoning, it resonated far beyond the usual bounds of B2B.
The idea
The name "UN.PATENT" carries a double meaning: it refers both to the United Nations (UN) and to the act of removing a patent, "un-patenting" a company's intellectual property. The first technology released for free use was "Fireman Access," a firefighting access system developed together with firefighters. Renault chose to announce it at the 4th Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety, held in Marrakech, Morocco in February 2025. The film was created by the creative duo AKATRE, with a stark, restrained tone that stands in sharp contrast to the usual glossy style of car commercials.
What happened
The campaign won Gold in the Creative B2B category at Cannes Lions 2025. The judges reportedly praised it for being grounded in a strong insight, for the boldness of its execution, and for how well it worked across every channel. That year, Publicis Conseil was named Agency of the Year for the second year in a row, the first time a French agency has ever achieved this.
Afterthought
In an industry where guarding your patents is simply the norm, it takes real nerve to say "at least let's share the technology that saves lives." Knowing this wasn't just for show, but a genuine decision made to save people's lives, makes it all the more moving.
Awards
- Cannes Lions Gold 2025
