Ferrari's F1 team partners with IBM to revamp its smartphone app with AI

The new Scuderia Ferrari mobile app offers AI generated articles, dynamic visualised data and more, using IBM's watsonx AI platform

US-based technology company IBM has partnered with the Scuderia Ferrari HP Formula 1 team to revamp the racing team’s official mobile app, introducing artificial intelligence-powered features. The updated app includes a new “Race Centre” section that uses IBM’s watsonx AI platform to generate race summaries and display interactive race data. The Scuderia Ferrari app is available on both Android and iOS.

 

AI in Scuderia Ferrari app: What is new

• AI-generated race summaries: The app includes AI-generated articles and content that are based on narratives drawn from actual race data.
• AI-powered visual data: The app displays dynamic and interactive visuals produced using AI. These graphics offer insights into various post-race metrics, including driver and car performance data, telemetry, weather conditions, track status, session results, and tyre or car strategy choices.
• Team insights: The app provides analysis that compares key race moments with historical data from past races. According to IBM, these insights are generated using large language models (LLMs) built on its watsonx platform, including the IBM Granite model.

How it works?

 

When asked about the data used to generate this AI-powered content, Fred Baker, Sports and Entertainment Lead at IBM, explained that the system collects ten different telemetry data points from the Scuderia Ferrari F1 car every second. In Formula 1, telemetry refers to the real-time collection and transmission of data from the car to engineers and analysts on the pit wall.

In addition to telemetry, the system incorporates race-related condition data supplied by Scuderia Ferrari, which may include details relevant to team strategy or in-race context. It also uses publicly available sources, such as information provided by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), the global governing body of motorsport.

 

To guide the tone and style of the AI-generated content, Baker stated that the models have been trained on examples of “how Ferrari talks about races.” He also noted that safeguards have been put in place to prevent the model from generating inappropriate content or making unsuitable comparisons to other Formula 1 teams.