Key Takeaways:
- Artificial intelligence (AI) is extensively used in sports to measure and analyze player and team performance, inform coaching decisions, and predict game outcomes.
- Advanced statistics, which use modern computing power and algorithms to uncover patterns and predict probabilities, have greatly increased the scope and accuracy of sports prediction.
- AI affects athletes by guiding training and improving performance, but also increasing the risk of injury and reducing spontaneity in sports.
- AI is changing the role of coaches, with younger coaches being hired to work with AI models to make decisions, and potentially replacing human coaching altogether.
- AI is also affecting officiating, with automated systems being used to call balls and strikes, and potentially replacing human officials.
Introduction to AI in Sports
Michael Lewis’ book Moneyball popularized the use of artificial intelligence in sports, where a low-budget baseball team found great success using data and statistics to inform personnel and strategic decisions. Since then, the use of AI in sports has become ubiquitous, with every aspect of the game being measured and analyzed. As the article notes, "If anything in a sport can be measured, it is being measured—and then used to train athletes, inform coaches, scout prospects, entertain fans, and inform betting." Sophisticated data interpretation technologies are the key to gaining a competitive advantage, with teams using AI to review defensive coverages, inform management decisions, and predict game outcomes.
The Extent of AI Use in Sports
The use of AI in sports is not limited to professional leagues, with countless companies offering AI models to track, synthesize, and coach youth athletes at all levels of mastery. Apps like GameChanger monitor Little League baseball games, providing detailed analysis and statistics. As the article notes, "Everything that moves in every sport can be measured, analyzed, and reported instantaneously—the speed of a tennis serve, a pitcher’s fastball, a hitter’s bat, a sprinter’s kick; the efficacy of different formations in every team sport; whether a batted ball would be a homerun in each major league stadium." This extensive use of AI is changing the way athletes train, coaches coach, and fans experience the game.
The Role of Advanced Statistics
Advanced statistics, which use modern computing power and algorithms to uncover patterns and predict probabilities, have greatly increased the scope and accuracy of sports prediction. As the article notes, "Advanced statistics take advantage of modern computing power, extensive data sets, mathematical modeling, and fancy algorithms to go beyond the descriptive by uncovering crucial past patterns that predict future probabilities." For example, Apple TV’s Major League Baseball programming uses nVenue statistics to display the probability that a given batter will hit a double when facing a 2-0 count, against a fresh lefty pitcher, in a given stadium, and countless other variables. These advanced statistics are being used to inform coaching decisions, predict game outcomes, and even influence betting.
The Impact of AI on Athletes
AI is having a significant impact on athletes, both positively and negatively. On the one hand, AI can guide training and improve performance, providing detailed analysis and feedback on technique and strategy. As the article notes, "Measurement guides training and improves performance- how to move your hips to get more speed and spin on a fastball, which weights to lift to get more spring in you jump, how many seconds before releasing a pass, etc." However, AI is also increasing the risk of injury, with athletes being pushed to their limits and beyond. The article notes that "Thirty-five percent of major league pitchers have undergone ‘Tommy John’ surgery because they have been trained to throw fastballs that create stress that is beyond the tolerance of their elbow ligament."
The Future of Coaching and Officiating
AI is changing the role of coaches, with younger coaches being hired to work with AI models to make decisions. As the article notes, "There is little room left for intuition and experience when the statistically probable outcomes of every play call have been calculated in exquisite and exhaustive detail." AI is also being used to officiate games, with automated systems being used to call balls and strikes, and potentially replacing human officials. The article notes that "AI is more accurate in calling balls and strikes, first downs, in or out in tennis, hits in fencing, and performances in gymnastics, diving, and ice skating."
The Impact on Fans and the Future of Sports
AI is changing the way fans experience sports, with advanced statistics and analysis providing a new level of detail and insight. However, AI is also reducing the emotional impact of sports, with the unpredictability and spontaneity of the game being lost in the pursuit of perfection. As the article notes, "The magic of sports can feel lost" when AI is used to predict outcomes and inform decisions. The article concludes that "Perfection and predictability make sports (and life) boring because they reduce the human drama which relies on spontaneity, imperfection, and unpredictability." As AI continues to transform sports, it is likely that the human drama and emotional impact of the game will be lost, replaced by a more mechanical and predictable experience.
https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/view/is-artificial-intelligence-turning-athletes-into-robots-and-robots-into-athletes
