America's Cup Utilizes AI to Showcase Wind Visualization for Television Audience

Viewers tuning in to the 37th America’s Cup now have the unprecedented opportunity to witness a crucial yet previously invisible element of the sport: the wind. In a groundbreaking collaboration between Capgemini and America’s Cup Media, WindSightIQ has been developed. This innovative program utilizes light detection and ranging (lidar), sensor fusion, and scientific computation to showcase the wind through augmented reality and virtual reality graphics. These graphics can be seamlessly integrated into the broadcast of the races, which commenced last month and will extend through October.

WindSightIQ not only captures wind field data but also feeds it into a yacht simulator to generate a "ghost boat." This virtual vessel is then projected onto the racecourse to illustrate the optimal paths that crews should navigate based on various wind variables such as direction, speed, sheer, and pressure. Despite this wealth of data, the boat crews themselves remain unaware of these insights and must rely on their intuition and training, upholding the spirit of the competition since its inception in 1851.

Grant Dalton, CEO of the Americas Cup Event, expressed enthusiasm for the impact of WindSightIQ on the viewer experience, stating, “Before and during the race, commentators will now be able to see the real-time wind patterns and explain to the viewers the options for the competing yachts. Being able to visualize the previously unseen wind and compare teams’ performances and tactical decisions against optimal routes will elevate audience engagement with the racing to a new level."