INDESCAT AI SUMMIT -- Into Reality talk on Fan Engagement

Artificial intelligence (AI) is already one of the main drivers of the profound transformation that sport is undergoing in Catalonia. This was confirmed at the Indescat AI Summit, held at the UPC's Vèrtex Auditorium in Barcelona, where the sports ecosystem gathered to analyse how this technology is redefining the management, performance and competitiveness of a strategic industry.

Modernisation and unity between business and the sports sector

The president of Indescat, Anna Pruna, highlighted in her institutional welcome that ‘we have gathered at this Summit to talk about the future’ and stated that ‘AI can help us to train better, prevent injuries, manage facilities more efficiently, create more immersive and personalised experiences in product design, connect with users or followers more directly, and much more’. For Pruna, the question is not ‘whether we will adopt AI in our organisations, but how we will do so and for what purpose; how we will put it at the service of better sport, a stronger and more competitive industry and associative fabric, and a more connected and healthier society’. The president also wanted to highlight the importance of generating synergies between the business sector and the associative fabric: ‘events such as today's show that when we share a vision and collaborate, the industrial and sports sector grows, becomes bigger and more competitive.’

Bringing the macroeconomic vision down to the playing field, the Summit gave a voice to several Indescat partners, who demonstrated with practical cases how the cluster is already generating innovation and cutting-edge technology at an international level. The partner organisations that participated in the sessions were:

• Technogym and Eurecat, with cases on how AI is revolutionising prevention, biometric monitoring and performance optimisation. This session also featured Idoia Pascalet, from Clínica Iknos, and Jordi Mompart, director of Barça Vision at FC Barcelona.
• Fluidra and ATM Media, which focused on how large corporations in the sports industry apply AI.
• 343 Media, which hosted a conversation with former tennis player and director of the ATP 500 Conde de Godó Tournament, Tommy Robredo, on sports innovation with AI, in an innovative live podcast.
• Manpower Group, with the presentation “Humans + AI: how artificial intelligence enhances human intelligence”.
• Into Reality, 3D Digital, Spotlio and CA Sports, who discussed how AI is transforming the way sporting events are designed, operated and experienced.