Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts events company, is using artificial intelligence (AI) to bring every punch, kick and body slam into extreme focus for sports fans watching events live.
According to Fast Company, UFC is harnessing its Insights Engine generative AI platform to deliver insights, statistics and graphics to UFC fans in real time across its broadcast and social media channels.
Alon Cohen, senior vice president of research and development at UFC, said its Insights Engine improves storytelling for fans, providing capabilities such as advanced analysis of live fights, spotlight fighter tendencies and project possible fight results.
Built on IBM’s watsonx AI platform and powered by its Granite large language models, the UFC Insights Engine collects and analyzes live data during fights and transforms that information into graphics, statistics and commentary for fans shown on broadcasts, events and social media.
The focus on the fight lets fans better understand rivalries, interpret judging decisions and see who has the upper hand, according to Fast Company.
For example, the system can highlight an underdog’s comeback or a veteran’s tactical shift in the final rounds, thus aiding comprehension and building emotional engagement.
“It drives storylines that are at the core of the most important product that UFC makes,” Cohen told Fast Company.
AI is being incorporated into the next era of sports, spanning the gamut from football, soccer and baseball to running, tennis and even aerobics.
Across a variety of sports, “AI has become the silent MVP, analyzing data, optimizing performance, preventing injuries and enhancing the fan experience,” PYMNTS wrote in an April report.
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Supporting Employees
AI isn’t just changing how fans watch the fights — it’s also reshaping how UFC staff work behind the scenes.
“Everybody who is in a proactive role at work has a long hopper of things they wish they could get to,” Cohen said, and AI can help teams streamline repetitive tasks and focus on higher-value projects.
However, he warned against rushing the rollout. Cohen emphasized that AI is not just another tech upgrade; it requires deliberate planning, cross-functional support and a workplace culture that encourages experimentation.
“You’ve got to give them time and resources,” he said. “You have to make sure that the tone, from the very top, is that it is safe for you to fail.”
Giving employees room to explore the technology, Cohen added, is critical to identifying where AI genuinely helps — and where manual work might be preferable.
While UFC’s use of AI is highly visible during broadcasts, Cohen noted that in many cases, the most effective implementations of AI are the ones that go unnoticed.
As an example, he cited the use by Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles of a facial authentication technology that lets fans enter without having to show a physical ticket.
Called “Go-Ahead Entry,” the system uses a camera to authenticate fans automatically. Users must download the MLB Ballpark app and upload their selfies in advance. They enter using special lanes at the stadium.
Cohen observed this is AI working behind the scenes, so that people do not remark on the technology. Instead, “You just say, ‘That experience was so much easier.’”
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