Technology has long been key to success in motorsport. F1 teams have been using technologies such as cloud computing, artificial intelligence and machine learning to improve performance. But as advances in artificial intelligence accelerate, racing giants are doubling down on their efforts.
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WOKING, England — Artificial intelligence isn’t something people are shouting from the rooftops inside McLaren’s sprawling technology center.
However, A 60-year-old motorsport giant Is an avid user of behind-the-scenes technology.
At the McLaren Technology Center (MTC) in Woking, England, the company explained how it is using artificial intelligence to improve its chances on the Formula 1 track.
“We are an organization that has been using traditional machine learning technology products for a long time,” Dan Keyworth, director of business technology at McLaren, said at an MTC press conference in October.
Using machine learning, Keyworth said McLaren is able to make decisions based on chance, which in turn helps train its artificial intelligence models.
The racing company showcased numerous examples of technological innovation at the MTC. They range from real-time data monitoring in secret mission control rooms to using “digital twins” of real cars (3D digital versions of the physical objects), allowing the team to model the conditions the actual vehicle needs to perform.
Keyworth said McLaren is heavily applying artificial intelligence in three main areas: improving vehicle performance, day-to-day operations and commercialization.
A replica of Lando Norris’s Formula 1 McLaren will be on display at Mobile World Congress 2024 in Barcelona, Spain on April 2, 2024, with sponsors including Mack Lahren, Pirelli, CNBC, Jack Daniels and Google Chrome.
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He added that the generative AI tools provide new capabilities for F1 teams, including the ability to conduct in-depth simulations of certain possibilities that may occur during a race.
This might include calculating the ideal amount of time the car should spend at a pit stop, as well as deciding which tires to add to the vehicle when replacing old ones.
“From a generative perspective, artificial intelligence allows us to really simulate more realistic scenarios and ask, ‘What would happen?'” Keyworth said.
He added that some of the scenes were starting to produce “pretty accurate” results – to the point of being “almost terrifying”.
F1 is no stranger to technological advancements
Technology has long been key to success in motorsport – and not just for McLaren.
Every F1 team has Take advantage of modern technological advancements over the years – from cloud computing to artificial intelligence and machine learning.
Aston Martin Aramco, for example, touts the use of so-called “data lakes” (mass data storage centers) and machine learning techniques to learn from large amounts of data to predict patterns and improve decision-making.
Aston Martin Aramco chief information officer Claire Lansley said machine learning algorithms can blend data from tires, weather and track conditions and use predictive analytics to optimize decisions.
in a April blog postThe speed of these developments is “really impressive,” she said.
“By adopting this technology, we will be able to free up multiple engineers to focus more on vehicle performance,” she noted.
Red Bull-owned Visa Cash App RB is another F1 team deploying artificial intelligence to improve on-track performance and strategy.
RB CEO Peter Bayer said earlier this year The Italian F1 team is using artificial intelligence to shorten race times to “hundredths of a second.”
Speaking at an event at the company’s software partner Epicor’s Faenza factory in Italy, RB’s head of vehicle performance Guillaume Dezoteux said AI could help inform teams during planning because “it means you don’t have to run 100 simulations.
Connectivity is ‘the lifeblood of the sport’
Keyworth pointed out that any innovation within McLaren would not happen without the help of partners such as IT tools and equipment Cisco and Google.
“Connectivity is probably the lifeblood of the sport,” he said ahead of the October 27 Grand Prix in Mexico City. “Without it, nothing would have started. No car could safely drive on the track.”
A key component behind McLaren’s ability to keep data flowing to its teams instantly is what it calls its mobile data hub.
These are tiny server rooms that can be flown to different tournaments around the world to keep the digital components of the operation online at all times.
Chintan Patel, chief technology officer of Cisco UK and Ireland, told CNBC, “These mobile data centers fly to each race venue with the famous F1 racing car and are remotely connected to the network to achieve real-time storage and data processing of MTC.”
McLaren’s Keyworth said another benefit of artificial intelligence is commercialization.
He said that for fans and partners, McLaren is increasingly trying to “enrich journeys and experiences so that our fans feel more connected.”
Using artificial intelligence, McLaren can better target F1 fans in emerging markets such as the United States, where the sport is growing in popularity, for example, by delivering personalized content to fans at specific times of day. message.
Meanwhile, when it comes to using artificial intelligence in business, Kevos said the main areas of improvement the company is seeing are “making everyone’s lives richer, smoother, faster and more efficient.”
“This is not a replacement of labor – it’s a replacement of labor,” he said. “You want your team to be able to do what you hired them to do — not take on the overhead of their role.”
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