Bengaluru, August 8, 2016: Microsoft today showcased the power of advanced data analytics and machine learning in sports at the first edition of its Machine Learning & Data Sciences Conference. The company has created a platform for software developers in India to build solutions that could change the way sports administration and sports management are approached today.
A high powered panel of sports and technology personalities including Javagal Srinath and Aakash Chopra, and Microsoft executives – Joseph Sirosh and Meetul Patel, participated in a discussion moderated by Shamya Dasgupta of Wisden here in Bengaluru today. During the discussion, they exchanged views on the growing impact of technology in sports and how application of Microsoft’s Machine Learning in cricket can be an opportunity for a data-driven approach to cricketing decision making.
This machine learning based platform offers insights into improving accuracy of predicting target scores in weather-interrupted T20 cricket matches. The platform is now available as a Jupyter notebook in Microsoft’s Cortana Intelligence Gallery along with a step-by-step guide for the developer community to build on and make further improvements in the approach across multiple areas such as playing conditions, weather and cricket grounds.
Delivering the keynote at the conference, Joseph Sirosh, Corporate Vice President of Data Group at Microsoft, said, “Data is a strategic asset which, when combined with the cloud and advanced analytics, has the potential to accelerate digital transformation for organizations and society, at large. Today, we are pleased to extend our machine learning based platform to developers who can now incorporate multiple parameters to intelligently estimate target scores in weather-interrupted T20 cricket matches. We believe the possibilities are vast – from more precisely estimating target scores to monitoring player condition on the field, and to predicting injuries and taking early preventive action.”
Microsoft Bing has been predicting various sporting events with a great degree of accuracy with the help of machine learning. Bing’s predicting streak began with the FIFA World Cup 2014. After correctly predicting 15 out of the 16 knockout stage games, it went on to predict the outcomes of various other big ticket events including the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 as well as the ICC T20 World Cup 2016 with 83% and 73% accuracy respectively.
Note to Editor:
Machine Learning is one of Microsoft’s key focus areas and one in which the company is making significant inroads, both in terms of research and development breakthroughs as well as translating the outcome of its work into real customer impact. Over the course of the two days, the conference will feature over 30 technical sessions, tutorials, demos and an overnight hackathon that will showcase Microsoft’s innovation in this field. The conference is being attended by 600 participants, including data scientists, students, developers, government elites, start-ups, cricketers and Microsoft experts, who will share new insights and showcase powerful solutions that are driving digital transformation for organizations and communities in India and worldwide.
The two-day conference is aimed at exploring the tremendous possibilities with Big Data, Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence and Open Source technologies to enable a rich set of platforms, intelligent apps, services and experiences to empower businesses and societies.
About Microsoft India
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) Microsoft is the leading platform and productivity company for the mobile-first, cloud-first world, and its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Microsoft set up its India operations in 1990. Today, Microsoft entities in India have over 7,000 employees engaged in sales and marketing, research and development, and customer services and support across ten cities – Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Gurgaon, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune.
