Innovation scouting can be used in many different ways: you can either scout to get an inspiration flow, to monitor a specific topic or even to identify new strategic partners, among other things. Read more about what to use Novable for.
However, after a delivery meeting with our client Aliaxis, we had a side discussion with Fabian Seunier, Group Head of Venturing, and talked about innovation scouting in the sports world. Fabian is a tennis player and mentioned that there should be innovation in the virtual tennis coaching world and he’d be curious to see how Novable works on such a briefing. As we always look for good opportunities to use our algos, it was fun to take on the challenge and make it our next Staff Picked story.
The following briefing was given: “I am looking for a company that offers a service or a product, tracking a tennis player’s activity in real-time. Using the state-of-the-art virtual technology (e.g., sensor, wearable tracker, AI, AR, etc.) to produce insights on a player’s performance. This solution should enable a player to improve their skills with minimal supervision enabling them to improve at a faster pace”. The following 12 startups were suggested by Novable’s algorithms, all following the corporate innovation trend.
All you need to use the real-time analysis feature is an iPhone or iPad and the SwingVision app. For a post-recording analysis, you can use an Android phone or GoPro camera, import it into the SwingVision app and their AI tracks your shots, it provides you a video analysis, and provides you statistics of your games, among other things.
Athlete’s AI delivers real-time analysis of actions and ball tracking using a single camera. This company wants to make video analytics accessible to all levels: whether you are a beginner or professional player. All you need is your phone’s camera and to register on their website. Their services are available for tennis, cricket and table tennis.
Wingfield is an AI-powered tennis court that collects and analyzes the data collected from a match. What differentiates this company from others is the fact that you need to find a Wingfield tennis court near you. You need to “check into” the field and the data collected after your matches will be immediately visible on your Wingfield app’s profile. Here is a short video illustrating it.
This app is an AI-based tennis coach that will provide you with feedback such as detailed match statistics, match strategy and planning based on collected data, and automatic score recognition, among others. BestShot collects this information through your smartwatch!
Accutenis can help you through the positioning of 12 cameras on different angles of a tennis court. The app can then give you immediate feedback and provide you with the most relevant performance information.
Among its features, this smartwatch allows you to share your live match score with your coach, family and friends. It analyzes your performance and includes other general features such as alarm, stopwatch and countdown timer.
This AI-powered company does not only install cameras in tennis courts but also in gyms and fields. According to them, the real power of their system is in the platform itself. PlaySight’s platform includes “automated video production, instant replay, multi-angle technology, pro-level analysis, full integration, content generation and more”, as they explain on their website.
Armbeep is a data tracker which is placed on a tennis player’s wrist, like a watch, and collects the session’s statistics. This information is then stored in their own app. The goal of the founding team is to “simplify the way teen players advance in their performance, improve the coaching and playing experience and build trust between coaches and parents”, as they expressed on their website.
This AI-powered company specialises in developing software. Among their recent work, you may find a Smart Workout App as well as a Tennis Tracking App. The latter makes it possible for tennis players to track their matches and provides track statistics of both players.
Tennis Analytics targets tennis federations, colleges and universities and academies. Through the uploading of raw footage, this company can provide you with many different statistics such as serve placement, serve percentage, or shot tolerance. Find a more detailed explanation of how they deliver match reports on their website.
The mission of this company founded in Barcelona is “to bring revolutionary true innovation and extreme accuracy to sports markets, providing unprecedented technology for referees, players and TV analysts, while thrilling sports fans as never before”. They do so by using Diamond technology, which detects everything that happens on the court, analyzes the data and presents it in a clear way so that players understand their games even better.
SparUp describes itself as “a data-driven and scientific platform to effectively plan, track and analyze athlete progress and produce measurable improvements across multiple sports”. The product they offer allows anyone to create custom training plans, track their progress, and evaluate performance through video analysis.
Understanding the issue is the first stage of the innovation scouting process. To improve the results, each phase is equally significant.
Innovation scouting, compared to technology scouting, takes a more comprehensive approach to put an idea into practice. In order to stay competitive, it can be useful to obtain information on new market trends and develop new technologies. Moreover, it helps the discovery of chances for fresh alliances, purchases, licensing agreements, and co-development projects.
In your opinion, which startup took corporate innovation to the next level? Let us know on LinkedIn!
[…] Innovation scouting is easy with Novable. There are many companies helping the industry to become a better athlete: 12 solutions. […]