Microsoft honours Ooredoo with its Digital Transformation Award

Recognising the potential of the new AI and its transformational effect on fan engagement with sport, Microsoft honoured Ooredoo with its Digital Transformation Award at the annual Microsoft Digital Transformation Awards event held last week at the Mondrian Hotel in Doha.

The Microsoft Digital Transformation Awards recognise those organisations and entities that are playing a leading role in driving successful digitisation initiatives that lead to better engagement of customers, empowered employees, optimised operations and reinvented products and services. Ooredoo had used the recent Microsoft Artificial Intelligence Summit to announce the launch of Ooredoo Sports, an exciting new partnership with Microsoft that will revolutionise the way fans engage with their favourite sports.

Ooredoo Sports is a new sports conversational Artificial Intelligence developed in partnership with Microsoft, which leverages Microsoft AI and Augmented Reality technologies to transform fan engagement with many different sports. The technology is planned to go live in June 2019 in time for Copa America, in which Qatar is participating. Ooredoo Sports will provide a full set of features through a unique conversational AI experience, whereby fans will be able to engage with the sport and receive information on every game, team and player.

Speaking of the new AI and the award, Yousuf Abdulla al Kubaisi, Chief Operating Officer, Ooredoo, said: “We’re delighted to have partnered with Microsoft on this exciting new development in sports enjoyment. We know accessing the latest technology is a key priority for our customers, and we’re proud to be able to offer them a completely new way of engaging with their favourite sports, particularly since they will have the opportunity to try out the new AI as they support Qatar in the upcoming Copa America. AI and Augmented Reality are indeed the future, and we look forward to seeing what else we can do with these exciting concepts.”

“Today, we recognize the success of those organizations that have taken a leap in their digital transformation journey to achieve more.”, said Lana Khalaf, General Manager, Microsoft Qatar. “The Qatar vision 2030 aims to transform the country into an advanced society that is capable of sustaining its development and providing a high standard of living for its people. Technological innovation is an integral part of this effort. The customers we celebrate today, are remarkable examples of how the intelligent cloud and the intelligent edge can be leveraged to innovate, and get ahead of the curve to gain a competitive advantage in a digital-first world.”

Customers will be able to use Ooredoo Sports via Facebook Messenger, Skype and Google Assistant by the beginning of June. The AR experience app will be available on Apple Store and Google Play.