Greetings from Day 2 of our AI for Brand Marketers Summit, hosted by Paramount Global. Day 1 was absolutely outstanding with an incredible group of attendees and a lineup of world-class speakers. If you're in town, you can still register for Day 3.
In the news: Spiideo, a Swedish startup, says it will revolutionize sports broadcasting with its AI-driven camera system. The company recently raised $20 million to enhance its technology, which mimics professional camera operators and can fully automate the broadcasting of 15 different sports.
According to the company, the system offers “TV-class” production at “previously unimaginable” price points, which they say will benefit smaller teams and niche sports.
The company says that more than 6,000 venues and 4,000 teams (including major football clubs and NBA franchises) are already using its advanced video analytics and live game data products. Spiideo says this latest round of funding will enable it to achieve 100% AI automation in sports broadcasting.
I'm excited to see how far Spiideo gets. Live switching a multi-camera video shoot is a true combination of art and science. Shots must be composed, then there's an intricate dance between the director (the one calling the shots) and the technical director (the one pushing the buttons). A live sports shoot is a thing of beauty: reaction shots from crowds, a close up under the brim of a base runner's cap just before an attempt to steal, etc.
There are other considerations. Right now, it takes a fairly big crew to cover a sporting event with "TV-class" (to use Spiideo's words) production values. There would be a big market for technology that allowed you to cover and stream a high school game that looked like broadcast television. Can it be done by AI alone? Yes. Will Spiideo be the ones to do it? We'll stay tuned.
As always your thoughts and comments are both welcome and encouraged. Just reply to this email. -s
ABOUT SHELLY PALMER
Shelly Palmer is the Professor of Advanced Media in Residence at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and CEO of The Palmer Group, a consulting practice that helps Fortune 500 companies with technology, media and marketing. Named he covers tech and business for , is a regular commentator on CNN and writes a popular . He's a , and the creator of the popular, free online course, . Follow or visit .
