AI pioneers Swupnil Sahai and a business partner successfully launch SwingVision, an innovative AI product specialized in tennis coaching and analysis.
Swupnil Sahai, the CEO and co-founder of SwingVision, has a passion for tennis that dates back to his childhood in the Bay Area. This passion, combined with his background in engineering, has led to the creation of a groundbreaking tennis performance-tracking app.
Sahai and his college roommate, Richard Hsu, first conceived SwingVision as a side project. It was during Sahai's work on a team using 3D object tracking to refine autonomous driving that he had an epiphany. He saw the potential for similar technology to revolutionize tennis coaching, particularly for aspiring players in countries without access to top coaches.
SwingVision leverages AI and the Neural Engine in iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch to analyze tennis strokes and provide insights. The app uses ARKit for adding graphics right onto the tennis court, offering a unique and immersive experience.
The app has seen significant growth, with more than 30 Division I college teams using SwingVision. It is also gaining traction with professional players outside of the top 200. SwingVision aims to make tennis development more accessible, breaking the perceived financial barrier.
One of the app's most innovative features is the ability for tennis enthusiasts to contest out-of-bounds calls from their Apple Watch. SwingVision is also working on livestreaming capabilities for tennis matches.
The App Store provides a platform for small teams and individuals like Sahai and Hsu to reach a massive audience without a large marketing budget. The developer and app stories featured on the Today tab in the App Store help build branding.
SwingVision has enlisted the services of advisors and investors such as Andy Roddick and James Blake. The app was inspired by the launch of the Apple Watch in April 2015 and was released as an Apple Watch app in 2016, but officially launched on the App Store in November 2019.
As of now, SwingVision boasts over 10,000 monthly users and is seeing growth in remote coaching features, which could benefit aspiring players in countries without top coaches nearby. The app is set to make a significant impact on the world of tennis.
