LONDON—Olympic Broadcasting Services recently tested AI-enhanced multcamera replay tech from Alibaba Cloud at the Olympic Qualifier Series in Shanghai in preparation for deployment at the Olympic Games in Paris, July 26-Aug. 11.
The successful tests, which took place at the Shanghai event, May-1619, used machine learning and deep neural networks—powered by Alibaba Cloud’s resilient cloud infrastructure— to reconstruct competition scenes in sophisticated detail, offering viewers a compelling engagement experience.
First introduced at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 for curling and speed skating events, the multicamera replay system was used to immerse fans in the action, allowing them to experience critical competition moments from a variety of optimal angles. With more AI features and deployment at more competition scenes, the innovation will elevate broadcasting of the Olympic Games to a new level, according to Alibaba Cloud.
Using specialized video processing within both edge and cloud environments, footage captured from strategically positioned cameras around the venues during the two-week event will be transformed into cloud-based 3D models with high-quality textures, enabling the creation of virtual frames from new viewpoints and making actions such as rotation more smooth and realistic, thus providing an immersive and cohesive 3D reconstruction of the competition scenes.
The AI-enabled replay system will be implemented at 12 competition venues for events such as beach volleyball, tennis, judo and rugby. The multi-angle video content will be made available through OBS’s production system, enriching coverage of the Olympic Games through cloud broadcasting with a range of dynamic and lifelike replay footage for global Media Rights Holders (MRH).
“We are thrilled to collaborate with OBS to expand the use of our cutting-edge cloud-based AI technology, aiming to elevate sports broadcasting to new levels of immersion and engagement,” said Selina Yuan, President of International Business at Alibaba Cloud Intelligence. “As a pioneer in delivering intelligentsports solutions, we aim to work with OBS to redefine how global sports enthusiasts experience and engage with the Olympic Games. We look forward to further contributing to the Paris 2024 experience with our advanced cloud technologies.”