Intel's AI App Scouts Olympic Talent via Smartphone Camera

Intel has developed an AI platform capable of identifying future Olympic talent.

Developed in collaboration with the International Olympic Committee and the National Olympic Committee of Senegal, the application is designed to enable talent scouts to monitor athletes from a phone camera, instead of using expensive, specialized equipment.

The app leverages computer vision to analyze video footage of athletes’ performances, which then generates statistics based on their performance which talent scouts can use to assess future Olympic hopefuls.

"This AI platform designed for talent identification not only uncovers hidden talent but also helps to bridge an existing gap,” said Caroline Rhoades, Olympic and Paralympic Games partner marketing manager of Intel’s sales, marketing and communications group.

Senegal first deployed the app in March, with coaches using the app to identify talent for the 2026 Youth Olympic Games taking place in the country’s capital, Dakar.

Deployed in six villages across Senegal, the smartphone app analyzed the physical capabilities of more than 1,000 children.

The analysis lasts for just minutes but provides coaches with more than 1,000 biomechanical data points on factors such as speed, agility and acceleration.

The app identified 40 hopefuls who showed “significant talent.”

Related:5 Ways Intel’s 'AI Everywhere' Is Powering the 2024 Paris Olympics

The app required additional Intel technology to be successfully deployed in remote areas, including Xeon processors powering video processing and Gaudi AI accelerators to improve the efficiency of model training.

"As time passes, the hope is that this technology can help increase the chances for every aspiring athlete to have the opportunity to shine on the global stage," Rhoades said.

The International Olympic Committee has earmarked AI as a key new tool to identify the next generation of Olympic athletes for some time.

The body announced earlier this year that it plans to launch a global project in 2025 to use technology to spot future sports stars.

Bach said the project ensures the organization “live[s] up to the commitment we made that AI in sport must be accessible to everybody.”

This story first appeared in AI Business' sister publication IoT World Today.