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Making its debut in Aspen, X Games will leverage AI technology from Google Cloud to enhance objectivity in subjectively judged sports.
The aim is to deepen fan engagement, and provide valuable insights that resonate with both fans and athletes, said Jeremy Bloom, CEO of X Games and a veteran of the sports business, in an interview with GamesBeat.
X Games will debut a new experimental AI technology developed in collaboration with Google Cloud, during the Superpipe competition at X Games Aspen 2025, with a goal of bringing new insights and a deeper level of engagement to fans. The event from January 23 to January 25 is sold out and will see tens of thousand of people, with billions of impressions across social, web sites and linear partners.
The tech will debut at an event on Thursday at the X Games in Aspen. One of the human leaders among the X Games judges was part of the team to implement it.
“The first thing it will do is watch practice and we’ll ask it to predict who the top three will be” among the snowboarders, Bloom said. “It’s also going to take over everything for free riders, and it will commentate the entire run and draw back on the history of the athlete.”
Bloom said the sport has a global fan base and it will share the commentary in multiple languages like Japanese. After that, it will judge the athletes based on a score. The x Games medals won’t be given out based on that AI score in this particular X Games in part because the tech is so new and it isn’t necessarily perfect yet, Bloom said. But you will be able to see how the AI judge compares to the human judges.
“We’re excited to show it and preview it and show the power of the things that it does,” Bloom said. “I think it’s the future of sports.”
It’s built on Google’s Vortex large language model. Bloom said it is good at doing the things you ask it to do and you can train it on footage of events, like what a good landing looks like versus on excellent landing. Bloom said the aim isn’t to replace human judges but to bring more accuracy, fairness and transparency to what has to date been a purely human subjective process. It’s like the use of “instant replay” by basketball referees, but in the case of snow sports, no such technology is used. It’s all based on what a human judge sees in the moment of the competition.
“You have to make sure it knows every trick in snowboarding,” Bloom said. “Understanding economy of motion looks like is a difficult problem.”
The AI technology aims to explore the potential for enhancing objectivity in judged sports, increasing fan engagement, and providing athletes with additional insights into their performances. It will analyze the men’s and women’s Superpipe competition event. The men compete on Thursday and Saturday.
As X Games celebrates its 30th anniversary, the introduction of this technology represents a step toward exploring how emerging technologies like artificial intelligence might complement human judges and offer fans a more detailed understanding of the competition.
It will watch qualifying rounds and make a judgement that will be shown to the crowd and the live event after a certain time delay. The crowd will see the results from human judges. The event has snowboarding and skiing for both men and women, with a total of 18 different events.
“I’ve had this idea in my head for decades,” Bloom said. “With the technology that we have at our disposal, mistakes (in judging) should never happen. It was shaped by my two decades as a professional athlete.”
Bloom said the tech is cutting edge and it will bring a lot of transparency and fairness to judging. u’
“I don’t think this would have been possible last year,” he said. “It’s showing up in ways that surprise me. Athletes say it’s like having a coach in a pocket.”
How It Works
X Games AI uses Google Cloud’s tools, including Vertex AI and advanced large language models, to analyze video footage and capture data on metrics such as airtime, trick difficulty, and execution.
The system is designed to provide deeper analysis of each run, offering fans additional layers of understanding. The tech was developed with input from X Games judges, athletes, and analysts to ensure alignment with the competition’s needs.
“This is just the beginning,” said Bloom. “AI is still in its early development when applied to action sports, but I’m blown away by what our model can already do. Aspen will allow us to test its capabilities and explore how it might enhance transparency, fairness, and engagement for fans and athletes alike.”
Part of Broader Changes
The introduction of X Games AI aligns with X Games’ ongoing efforts to evolve its competitions. In 2026, the Action Sports Games League (XGL) will launch a new team-based format, where athletes can compete for both individual and team recognition. The league will also include interactive features such as fantasy sports, betting, real-time analytics, and expanded opportunities for fan engagement.
“While X Games AI is an early experiment, it reflects our commitment to exploring ways to improve competition and fan experiences,” added Bloom. “We look forward to gathering feedback from its debut in Aspen and refining the technology based on those insights.”
X Games Aspen 2025 will provide an opportunity to evaluate the tool’s performance and gather input from stakeholders. Further updates on X Games AI and its potential applications are expected in the coming months.
Jeff Moorad, CEO of MSP Sports Capital, said in a statement, “When we acquired X Games, our goal was to reimagine unique fan experiences and increase access to the world’s premiere athletes. The X Games partnership with Google is a great example of how we intend to use technology to enhance that experience.”
