The organization of the 1937 world exhibition in Paris had placed the German and the Soviet pavilions directly across each other. Hitler wanted to withdraw from participation, but Speer, who had by coincidence seen the Soviet pavilion plans while visiting Paris, convinced him to participate after all, after he had shown Hitler his design for the pavilion.

By the opening day of the exhibition, only the German and the Soviet pavilions were finished. Plagued by delay, the 1937 world exhibition was to be dedicated to art and technology in modern life. The exhibition, however, was dominated by the political pavilions of Germany and Soviet Russia.

Five hundred feet high, Speer's pavilion was completed by a tall tower crowned with the symbols of the Nazi state: an eagle and the swastika. The pavilion was conceived as a monument, a symbol of German pride and achievement. It was to broadcast to the world that a new powerful Germany and its technical achievements were the result of a mass will and restored national pride. At night, the pavilion was illuminated by floodlights.

Boris Iofan, who designed the Palace of Soviets which was planned to be constructed in Moscow, designed the Soviet pavilion for the exhibition. The grand building had two large statues on top of it, symbolizing the Bolshevist victory over national-socialism. However, Speer had by coincidence seen the Soviet plans in Paris, and designed an even larger pavilion, which seemd to form a bulwark against the Soviet assault.

At the presentation, Speer was awarded a golden medal for his design. It was probably a political concession that the Russian architect was granted the same price. For his model of the Nuremberg party rally grounds, the jury granted him, to his and Hitler's surprise, a Grand Prix.