Advancements in artificial intelligence will transform basketball and other sports, said the inventors and co-founders of Huupe, a sports-tech company, on the second day of Leap technology conference in Riyadh.
Huupe is a smart basketball hoop that can track, analyse and potentially improve player performance.
Co-founders Lyth Saeed, a Palestinian-American, and Paul Anton, a Greek-American, both from Milwaukee, took to the stage at Leap to talk about their goals for the product and the California-based company.
"We want to be the Fortnight of basketball," said Mr Anton, referring to the popular multiplayer online video game, noting that Huupe allows for a similar experience between players in various geographic locations.
Mr Saeed and Mr Anton said the genesis of their invention goes back to their childhood, both of them growing up as friends in the US state of Wisconsin, and both being long-time basketball fans.
They founded the start-up in 2015 but it took several years as they sought the right technology, tools and financing to implement their smart basketball vision.
"We thought, for sure, someone had come up with the idea to make the backboard a screen before, but we were the first," said Mr Saeed, noting that Huupe successfully secured a patent for their product.
"We're the first company to display that information on the backboard in real time."
As of 2023, they said Huupe had raised $11 million from investors.
The company's smart basketball hoop, unveiled in 2022, is currently available for $4,995 or $9,995, depending on the model.
Soon, the company hopes to introduce a Huupe 'mini', which it hopes will cost $499.
The company had not merely created a smart basketball hoop, but rather a basketball platform with an app that allows for users to sign up for various training sessions and features, the co-founders told the crowd at Leap.
So far, according to Huupe, more than 1,000 orders have been placed.
Mr Saeed said the company has installed its first Huupe in Saudi Arabia at one of Saudi Aramco's facilities.
They have also sold several in the UAE.
"We have investors in the UAE," said Mr Anton, who added that Huupe is currently pursuing a series A funding round.
Huupe's smart basketball hoop tracks shooting percentage, player location and speed, and offers advice from various athletes through video and the app.
It also allows for players to play various games remotely against one another, assuming both have a Huupe installed.
The company said purchases of the hoop were already available outside the US.
Mr Saeed and Mr Anton are not alone with their vision of a merger between technology, data and sport, especially at Leap, where hundreds of technology companies are laying out a plans for athletes, teams and fitness aficionados.
Mohamed Kamel, chief executive of Lumin Soft, an Egypt-based custom software and data science company, showed an AI-powered product, Pitch+, which can analyse football players through video camera and almost instantaneously provide analysis and trends.
“It could be a revolution for football,” Mr Kamel said. “It’s all done without GPS tracking,” he added, referring to similar products which rely on cumbersome devices players have to wear.
"If you're a coach and need to analyse the opposing team, you can show Pitch+ the team's game and analyse it," he added.
Lumin Soft is in the early stages of putting together a marketing plan to court football clubs to use Pitch+, while also working on overall fitness training technology to be used in homes.
Momentum surrounding AI shows no sign of slowing down, especially at Leap, where AI and large language models are being featured and promoted by various tech companies and start-ups throughout the large exhibition venue.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
McIlroy's recent struggles
Last six stroke-play events (First round score in brackets)
Arnold Palmer Invitational Tied for 4th (74)
The US Masters Tied for 7th (72)
The Players Championship Tied for 35th (73)
US Open Missed the cut (78)
Travellers Championship Tied for 17th (67)
Irish Open Missed the cut (72)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE Premiership
Results
Dubai Exiles 24-28 Jebel Ali Dragons
Abu Dhabi Harlequins 43-27 Dubai Hurricanes
Fixture
Friday, March 29, Abu Dhabi Harlequins v Jebel Ali Dragons, The Sevens, Dubai
Ain Issa camp:
- Established in 2016
- Houses 13,309 people, 2,092 families, 62 per cent children
- Of the adult population, 49 per cent men, 51 per cent women (not including foreigners annexe)
- Most from Deir Ezzor and Raqqa
- 950 foreigners linked to ISIS and their families
- NGO Blumont runs camp management for the UN
- One of the nine official (UN recognised) camps in the region
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Inas%20Halabi%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENijmeh%20Hamdan%2C%20Kamal%20Kayouf%2C%20Sheikh%20Najib%20Alou%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Malcolm & Marie
Directed by: Sam Levinson
Starring: John David Washington and Zendaya
Three stars
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Sreesanth's India bowling career
Tests 27, Wickets 87, Average 37.59, Best 5-40
ODIs 53, Wickets 75, Average 33.44, Best 6-55
T20Is 10, Wickets 7, Average 41.14, Best 2-12
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
