Cricket Australia unveils AI feature for live match insights
Cricket Australia has launched a new AI-powered feature on its Cricket Australia Live app, designed to provide fans with enhanced real-time updates and insights during matches.
The new feature, known as the AI Insights matchday companion, was unveiled during the Day-Night Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, part of the CommBank Women's Ashes series between Australia and England. It aims to offer cricket enthusiasts continuous updates enriched with player statistics and key match milestones, giving users deeper insights into the unfolding events on the field.
This development is a collaborative project with HCLTech and Microsoft. It utilizes Microsoft's Azure Open AI Service and benefits from HCLTech's expertise in front-end and API development. The feature marks a continuation of Cricket Australia's efforts to provide a more seamless and personalised fan experience via technological advancements.
Sonia Eland, Executive Vice President and Country Manager for Australia and New Zealand at HCLTech, expressed the potential impact of this technology on fan engagement with the sport. "By harnessing the power of GenAI, we have the ability to reimagine the way fans engage with sport," she stated. "HCLTech has partnered with Cricket Australia for several years through our long-term role as the sport's Official Digital Technology Partner, but our collaboration with Microsoft will further enhance the digital experience. Ultimately, our goal is to bring cricket fans even closer to the action."
Microsoft's Chief Technology Officer for Australia and New Zealand, Sarah Carney, emphasized the transformative potential of AI in enhancing user interaction. "We're excited to bring cutting-edge AI technology to cricket fans through our partnership with Cricket Australia and HCLTech," she remarked. "This innovation demonstrates how generative AI is transforming the way we interact with the world around us, bringing insight, meaning and personalisation to audiences old and new."
Cricket Australia has been in partnership with HCLTech since 2019 to overhaul the organisation's core API platforms. In 2023, this partnership was extended for an additional five years, allowing HCLTech to maintain its role as Cricket Australia's Official Digital Technology Partner. This partnership has led to various initiatives, such as TechJam, which promotes the development of technological solutions for cricket, and has helped the Cricket Australia Live app become the leading sports app in Australia.
Nick Hockley, CEO of Cricket Australia, highlighted the significance of this collaboration in advancing the digital engagement of fans. "We are very excited to partner with both HCLTech and Microsoft to create brilliant experiences for our fans by enhancing the CA Live app," he noted. "Our aspiration is to be a world leader in the way sporting codes bring fans closer to the game through digital technologies and we're thrilled to launch this latest innovation at the CommBank Women's Ashes Day-Night Test."
