Each year, Special Olympics International and its 220 chapters worldwide organize some 108,000 events. The games give athletes with intellectual disabilities the opportunity to compete in everything from basketball to bocce, gymnastics to judo. The group’s lofty goal is to “transform lives through the joy of sport,” which has the added benefit of helping erode misconceptions about its athletes. But until recently, one of the heaviest lifts for the nonprofit came from the basic mechanics of running their signature sporting events. There was the job of registering athletes, setting up the matches and competitions and scrambling to tally scores. People… Read More
Can a computer fill out a March Madness bracket better than humans? So far this year, it doesn’t look like it. As the Sweet 16 kicks off Thursday with four NCAA men’s basketball tournament games, we took a look at Microsoft Bing’s bracket performance thus far. Bing, which used “intelligent machine-learning technology to analyze social and search signals” to make its bracket predictions, is 34-14 so far through 48 games played. It missed eight picks in the first round, and another six in the second round. Bing also only has two Final Four teams remaining — it picked Louisville and Villanova (its… Read More
After stints with Electronic Arts, Microsoft and SEGA, Peter Moore has landed his “dream” job — but not at a company you might expect. Moore, who spent nearly a decade at EA leading its sports unit and most recently its competitive gaming division, will become CEO of Liverpool Football Club this June. The 61-year-old is well known in the gaming industry, having helped lead Microsoft’s Xbox team during the Xbox 360 launch and famously inking Xbox-related tattoos on himself. He left the Redmond tech giant in 2007 for EA Sports and held positions as chief operating officer and chief competition officer. But now he’s headed… Read More
Bryson DeChambeau is clearly the PGA Tour’s geekiest golfer. The 23-year-old California native who earned a physics degree from Southern Methodist University has brought his data-driven, science-influenced, and exceptionally eccentric philosophy to the world’s top professional golf circuit in a big way. GeekWire had a chance to catch up with DeChambeau last month at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, where the PGA Tour pro was helping promote a new smartphone app from Bridgestone that helps golfers find the best golf ball for their game. “I would say I’m at the leading edge of technology in regard to the game… Read More
Microsoft wants to change how sports fans think about autographs. The tech giant this weekend unveiled “Social Autograph,” a new concept that digitizes an age-old art form — traditionally created with pen and paper — by taking advantage of the company’s Surface tablet and Windows inking technology. Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, a long-time Microsoft spokesman, showed off the first-ever “Social Autograph” while appearing on Conan O’Brien’s late night show. Had a blast stopping by @ConanOBrien today. Hooked him up with the first ever Social Autograph on a @Surface #MicrosoftNFL pic.twitter.com/IweAhy8VOu — Russell Wilson (@DangeRussWilson) February 1, 2017 Microsoft also invited Saints quarterback Drew Brees,… Read More
