On August 18, 2025, IBM and the United States Tennis Association announced a major expansion of their longstanding partnership by unveiling a suite of artificial intelligence–driven features for this year’s U.S. Open. The rollout represents a leap forward in how global audiences will consume the tournament, offering fans an unprecedented level of personalization and interactivity whether they are sitting inside Arthur Ashe Stadium or streaming highlights thousands of miles away.
The centerpiece of this new digital experience is an AI assistant called Match Chat, which is available across all 254 singles matches in the men’s and women’s draws. Match Chat gives fans the ability to ask natural language questions about players, match statistics, and tournament context, receiving real-time answers delivered in a polished editorial voice. Whether it is a question about a head-to-head history, a player’s current service percentage, or even the correct pronunciation of a competitor’s name, the tool responds instantly. Powered by IBM’s watsonx Orchestrate platform and trained on a mixture of tournament data and advanced language models, it transforms the passive act of checking stats into an interactive dialogue that mirrors a conversation with an expert analyst.
Complementing this innovation is a reimagined version of IBM SlamTracker, a platform that has been a mainstay of the Open for years but now incorporates predictive modeling in the form of “Likelihood to Win” projections. These real-time calculations use a blend of player performance data, expert inputs, and match momentum to provide point-by-point assessments of who has the upper hand. For fans, this means more than just watching the scoreboard; it means understanding the ebb and flow of a match in a quantifiable way, almost as if peering into the strategies that coaches themselves are monitoring behind the scenes.
The experience does not stop there. IBM has expanded its AI Commentary feature, which automatically generates audio narration and subtitles for highlight reels. This function is particularly valuable for international viewers and for those catching up on matches after work, as it distills the day’s action into compelling summaries that are accessible and easy to digest. Unlike traditional highlight packages, which rely solely on visuals, these clips now come with context provided by a generative AI engine that can explain the turning points of a rally or the stakes of a crucial set.
Another fan-focused upgrade comes in the form of Key Points, a summarization tool designed to meet the needs of today’s fast-paced digital consumer. By clicking on an article or statistical page, users receive a three-point overview that captures the essentials at a glance. It is a time-saving feature that recognizes how audiences engage with content in an era where attention is constantly divided between multiple screens. For busy professionals or casual fans, Key Points ensures that staying connected to the tournament does not require hours of reading or scrolling.
These enhancements reflect broader cultural and technological trends that are transforming the way sports are consumed. Fans today are no longer content with passive viewing. They expect real-time interactivity, deeper insight, and digital experiences that match the sophistication of the technology they carry in their pockets. A recent global survey commissioned by IBM underscores this demand, with more than four out of five tennis fans expressing interest in AI-powered enhancements and a majority indicating that they trust AI-generated content. This trust, coupled with rising expectations for personalized engagement, has made the integration of machine learning and analytics into sports coverage a natural next step.
For the U.S. Open, the move is also a continuation of its reputation as a leader in sports innovation. The tournament has long prided itself on pioneering new technology, from early use of electronic line calling to advanced digital scoreboards. Its partnership with IBM, which stretches back more than three decades, has consistently been at the heart of these changes. The tech giant provides the cloud infrastructure and data systems that allow the Open to handle massive surges in traffic as millions of fans access digital platforms during peak match times. With watsonx tools and AI models now embedded into the fan experience, the partnership deepens in a way that makes data not just a background function but the centerpiece of storytelling.
For IBM, the initiative is part of a larger strategy that extends beyond tennis. The company has been investing heavily in applying artificial intelligence to industries as diverse as finance, automotive engineering, and media. Its recent collaborations in Formula One racing, for example, have showcased how predictive analytics and machine learning can be applied to performance optimization. In the context of the U.S. Open, those same principles are reimagined for fan engagement, turning complex datasets into insights that are not just accessible but enjoyable.
The timing of this digital rollout is also significant. As sports increasingly compete with entertainment, streaming platforms, and even social media for audience attention, offering fans a reason to remain engaged throughout a two-week tournament is vital. By embedding AI into every stage of the fan journey—from pre-match research to in-game updates and post-match highlights—the U.S. Open ensures that it can meet the needs of a diverse and global audience. For some, that means diving deep into advanced analytics. For others, it means catching up with a three-point summary between meetings. Either way, the tournament delivers.
Ultimately, the launch of these AI-powered experiences signals a new era for both IBM and the U.S. Open. It is not just about showcasing what artificial intelligence can do in the abstract, but about embedding it seamlessly into one of the world’s most iconic sporting events. The result is a tournament that feels not only modern but also more accessible, giving fans at every level—from seasoned enthusiasts to first-time viewers—a chance to connect more closely with the sport. In a year where technology continues to redefine how we watch and engage with entertainment, the U.S. Open’s embrace of AI ensures it remains at the forefront of innovation.
