Breaking Out of the Gate: The Rise of Innovative Horse Racing Startups
Horse racing, that age-old sport of kings, is not just about fancy hats and mint juleps anymore. Nope, it’s 2024, and the horse racing industry is galloping at full speed into the future, thanks to a herd of innovative startups.
These new players are not horsing around; they’re transforming the sport with technology that would make even the most tech-savvy Silicon Valley unicorn jealous. So, why all of a sudden such a rise in new horse racing startups?
Well, a large portion of the popularity of this niche is thanks to technological advancements. A few years ago, businesses couldn’t find a way to revolutionize horse racing or introduce something new.
However, the introduction of Blockchain technology, digital sensors, and Big data management, opened many new opportunities for this industry that were not possible before.
In the last couple of months, we have seen many new revolutionary startups that are making horse racing more entertaining, and safer, improving the betting process and more.
So, in today’s article, we will dive deeper into the world of horse racing startups and find out more about the companies that are taking horse racing into the future.
The Digital Racecourse
First, out of the gate, we have companies like Realm of Silks diving into the Play-to-Earn (P2E) model. Think owning a digital horse that’s a spitting image of a real-world champ, and yes, there’s real money involved.
There are many different games that promise to take horse racing to the virtual world. These Blockchain-based games, allow people to own digital racehorses, breed, train and earn money while racing.
Game of Silks is a game that had more than $10 million in funding since its 2021 launch, this company lets you buy digital horses as NFTs. Other games are ZED Run, NEOBRED, and more
But wait, virtual horse racing games aren’t the only way that the sport is digitalizing. We have other companies that digitalize real-world horse racing like Equine MediRecord. The company birthed by brainy folks from Trinity College Dublin, is bringing the medical records of thoroughbreds into the digital age. No more fumbling with paper logs; it’s all about sleek apps and websites now.
It is like a digital vet that helps you take care of your horse, keep all of his medical records in one place, and get the best advice.
AI, Cameras, and… Horses?
Imagine a world where AI and deep learning meet horse racing. Well, stop imagining because it’s happening. Equidia, in partnership with KLAP, is using AI to track jockeys and horses in over 40 races daily. And 42DLP?
They’re turning this data into a visual feast for viewers, complete with augmented reality. It’s like watching a race through the eyes of a tech wizard.
This will improve the overall user experience of horse racing and allow people to view real-time data such as horse’s speed, vitals, and place during the race.
Betting Smarter, Not Harder
1/ST BET is changing the betting game with its tech that analyzes ongoing races against historical data.
It’s like having a supercomputer in your pocket, calculating the odds for you. Technology allows us to process large piles of data.
And as handicappers already know, the more data you have the more accurate bet you can make. But does this mean you don’t need to learn the basic on how to bet on the Kentucky Derby and AI will do that for you?
Well, not quite. Horse racing is a dynamic and unpredictable sport where no machine can accurately guess the outcome. The human touch is crucial. However, such start-ups can revolutionize the betting process of horse racing, and introduce new strategies and capabilities of handling big data.
Ownership of a Real Horse
There is a new startup that revolutionized the game of racehorse ownership. But no, we are not talking about owning a virtual racehorse NFT. We are talking about owning a real racehorse.
MyRacehorse is a revolutionary company that allows people to invest in racehorses. However, you don’t have to buy an entire horse, you can buy fractional shares of a real racehorse.
Similar to crowdfunding, you’ll get a tiny piece of a horse and get into the owner’s circle. You also can earn money if the horse performs well.
Final Words
As you can see, the sport advances in every field, but the main trend is going digital. From the introduction of Blockchain technology to racehorse ownership and improved user experience on races through gadgets, these new startups are shaping the future of the sport.
Not to mention that horse racing is also pushing sustainability, and many new startups try to help racecourses become completely independent from energy, to waste management and water reserves.
The best thing is the spirit of these companies in the horse racing niche. Over the last two years, we’ve seen many new startups that push the limits of technology and are introducing something new to the sport.
All of them have the same goal. To make horse racing safer and more entertaining, and increase its overall popularity.