Technology has always been the key to success in motorsport. Formula 1 teams have used technologies such as cloud computing, artificial intelligence and machine learning to improve performance. But as artificial intelligence advances at an increasing pace every day, the racing car giants are multiplying.
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WOKING, England — Inside McLaren’s massive technology center, artificial intelligence is not something to be shouted from the rooftops.
However, the 60-year-old motorsport giant is an avid user of the technology behind the scenes.
At the McLaren Technology Center (MTC), located in Woking, England, the company demonstrated 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, McLaren’s director of business technology, said at a press conference at MTC in October.
Using machine learning, McLaren can base its decision-making process on probability, which in turn helps it train its AI models, according to Keyworth.
The racing company showcased many examples of technological innovation at the MTC. They range from monitoring real-time data inside a secret mission control room, to using “digital twins” (3D digital versions of physical objects) of real cars that allow teams to model the conditions in which the actual vehicles will need to perform.
Keyworth said there are three main areas where McLaren is applying AI significantly: improving vehicle performance, daily operations, and marketing.
A replica of Lando Norris’ Formula 1 McLaren car, featuring sponsors McLaren, Pirelli, CNBC, Jack Daniels and Google Chrome, is on display at the 2024 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, on April 2, 2024.
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He added that generative AI tools provide new capabilities for Formula 1 teams, including the ability to conduct in-depth simulations of some of the possibilities that may occur during races.
This can range from determining the ideal amount of time a car should spend at pit stops, to determining which tires should be added to the car when replacing an old set.
“What AI allows us to do from a production perspective is actually try out more of those actual scenarios and ask, ‘What would happen?’” Keyworth said.
He added that some of these scenarios are starting to produce results that are “very accurate” — to the point of “almost frightening.”
F1 is not new to technological advancement
Technology has always been key to success when it comes to motorsport, and not just for McLaren.
Various Formula 1 teams have been exploiting new developments in technology for years, from cloud computing to artificial intelligence and machine learning.
For example, Aston Martin Aramco is promoting the use of so-called “data lakes” – massive data storage centers – and machine learning technology to learn from vast amounts of data to predict patterns and improve decision-making.
Machine learning algorithms can blend data on tyres, weather and track conditions, and use predictive analytics to improve decisions, says Claire Lansley, chief information officer at Aston Martin Aramco.
In a blog post in April, she said the speed at which these developments are happening is “truly impressive.”
“By adopting this technology, we will be able to free up many engineers so that they can focus more sharply on the car’s performance,” she noted.
Another Formula 1 team using AI to improve its performance and strategy on the racetrack is Visa Cash App RB, which is owned by Red Bull.
Peter Bayer, CEO of RB, said earlier this year that the Italian F1 team is using artificial intelligence to compete down to “hundreds and thousandths of a second.”
Speaking at an event with the company’s software partner Epicor at its factory in Faenza, Italy, Guillaume Dezoteux, head of vehicle performance at RB, said AI can help inform teams when it comes to planning because it “means you don’t need to run 100 simulations.”
Contact is the “lifeblood of sports”
Keyworth noted that none of the innovations underway within McLaren would happen without the help of IT tools and equipment from partners such as McLaren cisco and Google.
“Communication is probably the lifeblood of this sport,” he said before the Mexico City Grand Prix on October 27. “Without it, nothing starts. No car can be on the track safely.”
A key element behind McLaren’s ability to keep data flowing to its teams in real time is so-called mobile data centres.
These are miniature server rooms that are flown to different races around the world to keep the digital components of the operation constantly online.
“These mobile data centers are transported alongside iconic Formula 1 cars to each racing location and connected via the Internet remotely to enable real-time data storage and processing,” Chintan Patel, chief technology officer for the UK and Ireland at Cisco, told CNBC. “From MTC.
Another area where AI adds benefits is marketing, according to McLaren’s Keyworth.
For fans and partners, McLaren is increasingly trying to “enrich the journey and experience, and make our fans feel more connected,” he said.
Using AI, McLaren can better target Formula 1 fans in emerging markets such as the US, where the sport has increased in popularity – for example, by tailoring information to fans at certain times of the day.
Meanwhile, when it comes to using AI on the business side of things, Keyworth said the company’s main area of improvement is “making everyone’s lives richer, smoother, faster and more efficient.”
“It’s not a labor alternative — it’s a ‘hard’ alternative,” he said. “You want to unleash your team to do the things you hired them to do — not work through the overhead that is inherent in their role.”
