As sports fans’ viewing habits continue to change, more and more sports leagues are attempting to offer consumers new and innovative ways to engage with players and games.
Many NBA fans use the league’s mobile app to watch their favorite teams. Given the growing popularity of digital platforms, the NBA is leveraging artificial intelligence to improve the viewing experience for fans.
At a tech summit in February, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver demonstrated AI technology that will change the way fans interact with games every time they choose to experience the league on an app.
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The NBA logo is displayed on the backboard before the game between the Denver Nuggets and Utah Jazz at Ball Arena on October 30, 2023 in Denver, Colorado. (C. Morgan Engel/Getty Images)
“We need to see the NBA move forward in leveraging AI,” Alex Beckman told FOX News Digital. “What we’re seeing is that brands that invested early and got a head start are now progressing to the second and third tiers of AI and how AI impacts their fans. It’s about being able to give.”
Beckman is the founder CEO of ONis the leading AI chat platform powering the AI experience for some of the world’s most famous sports brands, including the New York Yankees and Las Vegas Aces.
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While Silver provided an overview of the technology, the league touted it as the engine driving new personalized experiences when watching live games on the app.
Some details about the technology are still unknown, but one of the features is expected to enable full animation. Users can basically animate players and make the game look like a movie.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver speaks during a press conference before the NBA in-season tournament finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and Indiana Pacers at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on December 9, 2023. (Teyfan Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images)
At one point during the demonstration, Silver asked for a tool to transform live game action “like a Spider-Man movie.” After just a few moments, the player transforms into a cartoon character, dramatic music begins to play, and digital effects related to the popular cartoon are added.
“Today, AI is generating the same kind of excitement that we saw in the early days of the internet,” Silver said during the experiment preview.
“Most of us intuitively feel that artificial intelligence will change our lives.”
San Antonio Spurs rookie sensation Victor Wembaneyama assisted Silver during the presentation. Last year’s top draft picks showed off the technology’s live translation capabilities. NB-AI commentary can quickly change the words of the classic sports movie “Hoosiers” from English to French.
Victor Wembaneyama (1) of the San Antonio Spurs during the 2023 NBA Las Vegas Summer League at Thomas & Mack Center on July 9, 2023 in Las Vegas. (David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images)
How will AI impact the NBA in the future?
For now, consumers typically engage with AI through widely available means, such as text-based ChatGPT and popular voice assistance tools like Siri and Google Assistant. However, technology companies such as OpenAI are focusing on videos generated by various algorithms. Earlier this year, OpenAI teased its next model, Sora.
What is artificial intelligence (AI)?
This technology has several advantages and disadvantages. For example, some have expressed concerns that AI could be used to circumvent an athlete’s NIL rights by using the AI version instead. On the positive side, AI can help foster healthy competition between sports leagues and teams and increase fan engagement by leveraging next-generation entertainment options.
The future of AI has been a hot topic since AI technology became widely available to the general public in late 2022.
“There has been a debate for a long time about what[AI is]and is it safe? Brands that understood that early on are now building on that first layer of interaction to launch and “We’re successfully innovating, and it’s great to see the NBA lead in that category,” Beckman said.
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Wenbanyama described NB-AI as “incredible.” Although NB-AI is still in its early stages, the French genius believes that the coming months and years will play a key role in the development of this technology.
“Only the future will tell what that will look like,” Wenbanyama added.
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