In a notable example of how AI is transforming sports coverage, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) Sports Europe has announced the launch of Cycling Central Intelligence (CCI), an innovative generative AI-powered platform developed in collaboration with Amazon Web Services (AWS).
The platform debuts at the 2025 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series season opener in Araxá, Minas Gerais (Brazil) on April 5. Designed to transform how mountain bike events are covered, it marks a significant advancement in sports broadcasting technology AWS and Warner Bros. Discovery said.
As part of this initiative, AWS becomes the Official Cloud Infrastructure, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Deep Learning Provider for the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series..
The two companies said that CCI will dramatically improve efficiencies for cycling commentators by mitigating the challenges of accessing comprehensive information about riders, venues and race histories within a live broadcasting environment. By providing instant access to a wealth of data points, it will allow commentators to deliver even richer storytelling to better connect fans with their favorite sport.
"What makes CCI truly revolutionary is how it enhances and complements the human expertise that makes sports broadcasting special," said Chris Ball, VP, Cycling Events at WBD Sports. "Our commentators and producers bring unmatched levels of experience and passion for the sport, and through our partnership with AWS, CCI ensures they can expertly craft the compelling stories and insights that our viewers love and that will keep them engaged.”
"This collaboration represents a significant step forward in our ongoing commitment to innovation in sports broadcasting," Ball continued. "By combining cutting-edge AI technology with our leading production expertise, we're setting new standards for how mountain bike events are brought to life for viewers around the globe."
"AWS is helping Warner Bros. Discovery enhance the art of sports storytelling through the practical uses of generative AI," added Samira Panah Bakhtiar, general manager of media & entertainment, games, and sports at AWS. "This collaboration showcases how AWS’ generative AI services can amplify human expertise. By handling time-consuming research and data synthesis tasks, CCI frees up WBD's talented commentary teams to focus on their passion and ability to capture the excitement of live sports."
The CCI platform leverages advanced generative AI capabilities of Amazon Bedrock and Anthropic's Claude 3.5 on AWS to create a unified knowledge base that processes and analyzes hundreds of documents about riders and events, along with vast databases of results, race times, and athletic performance data.
This comprehensive system enables commentators and production teams to access information through natural language queries, dramatically reducing research time and enabling more engaging, data-driven storytelling. Working backwards from the needs of its broadcasting teams, WBD Sports Europe collaborated with teams at AWS to envision CCI, develop a proof-of-concept, and build the solution.
CCI's technical architecture carefully balances AI capabilities with human expertise. The platform utilizes Amazon Textract for document processing, Amazon Translate for breaking down language barriers across international content, and Amazon Comprehend for organizing and structuring information. Amazon Bedrock integrates with these services while ensuring broadcasting professionals maintain complete control over the storytelling process.
WBD and AWS stressed that the platform will continue to evolve throughout the season, with plans to incorporate additional features that will enable WBD’s commentators and production teams to serve mountain bike fans with the best possible live content and viewing experiences.
The 2025 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series begins in Araxá, Minas Gerais (Brazil) this weekend with the first of 16 rounds. Live and on-demand coverage of every race is available through WBD’s channels and platforms including Eurosport (Europe) and TNT Sports (UK & Ireland) with streaming on Max and discovery+, as well as around the world through WBD’s broadcast partners.
