How are IBM and Boardroom Transforming the World of F1?

Over the weekend, the United States Grand Prix, in Austin, Texas took place, with eyes firmly on the battle between McLaren and Ferrari for second place on the podium. Utilising the race weekend, Boardroom and IBM presented a specific edition of Boardroom Talks Live at the Powder Room in Austin. 

Ahead of the race, the Boardroom Talks Live brought together leaders from across various industries including sports and technology and media for a deep discussion to investigate how Formula 1 is laying the foundations for transforming sports entertainment from the inside out.

Those at the event included the host, Boardroom Co-Founder Rich Kleiman, moderator Boardroom journalist Michelai Graham with conversations from IBM Senior Vice President of Marketing and Communications Jonathan Adashek, Wasserman Chief Creative Officer Daniel Nunez and WNBA Champions Breanna Stewart and Natasha Cloud.

IBM and Formula 1

Towards the end of 2024, racing team Scuderia Ferrari HP announced its partnership with IBM with hopes to bring together two historic companies to redefine digital transformation for fan experience and engagement both on and off track. 

In May 2025, it was announced that IBM had provided Ferrari, for the first time, with a generative AI app to provide features like race recaps, stats, post-race insights, interactive polls, fan messages and race highlights.

IBM’s Watsonx platform and Granite models power the app.

During Boardroom Talks Live, Jonathan Adashek, IBM Senior Vice President of Marketing and Communications said: “There’s 400 million Tifosi, or Ferrari fans, passionate Ferrari fans around the world. And how do you tell that story? And how do you engage them in a new way? And that's what we've helped them do… We rebuilt the app this year... And we've got really cool new features that are coming soon. I'm going to try one of them at the track this weekend.”

IBM and Scuderia Ferrari will be rolling out new app updates throughout the 2025 season, bringing more anticipation to each race. The data and AI technologies from IBM combined with Ferrari’s current and historic data has reinvented the digital fan experience. 

Technology and innovation reshaping the sport

Throughout the event, the panellists shared their insights on how the latest technology and innovation is changing Formula 1 in real time, developing the way the sport is viewed by athletes, teams, broadcasters and fans.

Natasha Cloud, American professional basketball player, said: “For me, what intrigues me the most about F1 is it's all-encompassing – from data, like analysis, strategy, how fans engage. And I think one of the things that has been really cool for us too is, not every girl has the access to be able to come to Austin for this. 

“But how do you make those fans that aren't able to participate in person? How do you make them feel like they're actually there? And I think the tech is what truly drives that, the fan experience engagement and how they consume the sport as well.”

The technological advances have created a stronger connection between Formula 1 and the telecommunications world, which will ultimately deepen the sports audience engagement and potentially bring new fans to the sport. 

Natasha Cloud is one of the sports newest fans, during the panel noted: “F1 is a really cool sport that I've recently gotten into – from what it takes for the drivers to do what they do on such a high level, to the fan engagement, the technology that is driven behind it. I’m thankful to be here, thankful to be around the conversation to introduce myself to something new.”

Fan interactions with technology

Combining telecommunications with Formula 1 creates a unique fan experience, where audiences feel like they are participating in the sport, receiving data like the pit wall or interviewing the teams themselves. 

Since IBM and Ferrari launched their app, IBM has gathered a significant amount of information from seeing fans interact with their technology.

Jonathan noted: “They’re passionate and they’re always looking for something new and they’re looking for that experience that follows them around. I mean, we all look for it, right? You want the same experience on your phone, it’s on your laptop, that’s in your car. People want that content to follow them around. And it’s no different here.”