At the U.S. Open, however, IBM gets to translate all of the above into terms the clients—and even average tennis fans—can easily understand.
“The Open is a key opportunity for us … beyond the traditional sports marketing opportunity,” Adashek said. “It’s an opportunity for us to show more of what’s happening and bring the technology to life in a new way.”
Last year, around this time, IBM focused its technology on the U.S. Open app and predicting the outcome of matches through tools like its Power Index and Match Insights. It’s still doing that, but it’s using watsonx AI Draw Analysis to determine how match outcomes are affecting each player’s path to the final. IBM also brought back the watsonx-driven AI Commentary it used at Wimbledon and The Masters for some of the Open’s early matches that weren’t aired on ESPN.
IBM has been using generative AI at events since the pandemic first hit in 2020 and has used it to drive online debates at the Grammys and to power fantasy football platforms. But as more consumers and businesses learn about generative AI through interacting with ChatGPT and other items, IBM has more reason to include it in broader discussions about cloud technology, cybersecurity and its applications for the USTA fans that IBM clients call customers.
“From a client perspective, what we hope to do through these events is paint a picture of what’s possible—bring a new perspective to each of our clients about how they could be applying these capabilities to their business,” Syken said.
Bringing sports business to business
Sports have served as a stage for IBM’s technology since the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, when the company system showing real-time results for races laid the foundation for ATM and travel reservation networks.