Does the idea of watching sporting events with AI referees sound futuristic? It certainly might. But when you take a look around the world of professional sports—football, soccer, fencing, basketball—advanced technologies are already having an impact on the roles of referees, coaches, players, and fans.
In fact, “precursor” technologies that provide the sensory input data for yet-to-be-invented AI algorithms are already in use. In some sports, athletes’ uniforms feature wearable devices and refs are using smart technologies to call plays. Technology looks likely to have a serious impact on how games are played and watched.
This presentation highlights key points from our article about how AI and other smart technologies might impact the future of professional sports. These slides provide an overview of the systems in use today, the rapid implementation of new smart technologies, and what fully automated refereeing might look like.