Euronews Next went to the Olympics venues in Paris to find out how artificial intelligence (AI) has been integrated into the 2024 Games.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is integrating into every aspect of our lives, and has made its way to the Paris 2024 Olympics.
The technology could even help spot sporting talent to go on to be Olympians of the future.
Intel, which is the Official AI Platform Partner for Paris 2024, has a stand at the Stade de France which is causing a lot of buzz among spectators who can test which sport their bodies are best suited to.
Entering a dark box to be met with bright lights on the inside, my body measurements are taken with a camera. I am then put through the motions of running on the spot as fast as I can, squeezing devices as hard as I can, and my reactions being tested by touching flashing lights quickly.
The Intel employees working in the booth are extremely upbeat and encouraging of my efforts, which are not on point after a morning of trying to get through the stringent security and bureaucratic hurdles to get into the privileged Olympic “grey zones”.
The tests end with having to do a super-hero pose and a final sprint. I am then met with my result, which flashes brightly. I am an all-round wannabe athlete, scoring the heptathlon.
The technology uses AI to gather and analyse the body’s strengths and weaknesses to see which of the 12 sports the participant is best at. The sports include football, sprinting and table tennis.
But this custom-built tech is not just for spectators at the Games: it could spot the next sporting talent anywhere in the world, creating opportunities for those from developing nations.
A version of Intel’s tech was tested in Senegal with the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
More than 1,000 young people from the country participated and 48 high performers were identified and will now be included in a programme run by the Senegalese National Olympic Committee.
“You can reach areas at a very low cost and figure out how to find athletes in all corners of the world and for all sports,” Sarah Vickers, Head of Intel’s Olympic and Paralympic Office, told Euronews Next.
“I hope that this technology has a role to play and we think that there’s going to expose so many more opportunities for athletes around the world”.
But AI is also helping current Olympians. Intel has created a chatbot for athletes to ask all their questions, such as how to get around Paris, where to eat, and how to get family accredited.
It makes it much easier for athletes to navigate through the Olympic administrative hurdles as the answers are given in real-time.
“We’ve heard really positive feedback that we’re taking away that pain for athletes to let them focus on their performance,” said Vickers.
Athletes are also benefitting from the IOC’s AI-powered tool to monitor social media platforms for signs of abuse and flag messages. It will gather information to help the IOC better understand online abuse to protect them more in future Games.
But AI is not just helping athletes or those hoping to be them.
For spectators from afar, there is an AI highlights feature, which makes watching the Games all the more simple.
Traditionally, highlights were done manually through tagging and clipping. Now through AI, those opportunities for highlights are almost endless.
Intel’s Automatic Highlights Generation system can capture key sporting moments in all sports. It was trained on Olympic archive videos and can be customised to meet the needs of different broadcasters.
Meanwhile, NBC is leveraging event coverage through its Peacock app by doing a 10-minute highlight playlist every day, tailored to each user’s sporting preference. It is recreating the voice of Al Michaels, an American sports broadcaster with over 50 years of experience, using AI.
And as for timekeeping, Omega will provide AI-powered tools to ensure accurate results. It includes a stroboscopic tool that will monitor athletes in athletics and diving events, intelligently tracking their movements.
