Formula E is defined by cutting-edge technology and fine margins. All participating vehicles are built on the same chassis and powered by the same battery. Uniformity of hardware means that teams rely on data and insight to gain strategic advantages. “The cars are essentially computers on wheels, without IT infrastructure they wouldn’t move an inch,” says Filippi. “Because of this, we have to be the best we can be in terms of analytics and AI.” Genpact’s AI-based technology combines third-party data on weather and track conditions with millions of data points generated by the Envision Virgin Racing vehicles – including information on alignment, speed, acceleration and battery usage – to inform strategic decision making at lightning speed.
Generating insights at pace is particularly important within Formula E. The format differs from most motorsports by holding its practice, qualifying and competitive races on the same day. Envision Virgin Racing has a distinct advantage in this area: a state-of-the-art simulator housed in the team facility at Silverstone. “We’re often racing on tracks we’ve never been to before – the simulator allows us to correlate augmented data with live data on race day to make necessary changes to the car in a very short space of time,” says Filippi.
The team has had a further advantage this season thanks to Genpact’s Radio Analytics Engine (RAE), which was unveiled to the sporting world last month. RAE uses advanced AI and analytics to process and structure the hours of radio chatter generated by drivers and their teams on race day. Insights that would be impossible to generate by ear are relayed to drivers as structured signals to inform split-second decision making on the track. “Racing is a dynamic sport, nobody can predict how the race is going to pan out and that’s part of the fun,” says Filippi. “Thanks to RAE, we’re able to generate structured, real-time insight into what our opponents are doing for the first time – adding a new layer to what we are able to do on the track.”
Genpact’s chief digital officer Sanjay Srivastava believes that the need to generate insights at pace is true “not just in motorsport, but across the board.” The company deploys similar cutting-edge AI and analytical technologies in the corporate arena; its insurance claims platform quickly turns vast amounts of information – including auto accident images, home damage and claims submissions – into insights to support liability and pay-out decisions. “From the racetrack to the boardroom, for insights to be actioned you need to have solid data foundations,” says Srivastava.
The Envision Virgin Racing team is as dedicated to winning the race against climate change as it is to winning on the track. Envision is a green technology company geared towards helping partner organisations reach net-zero carbon emissions. Together with Virgin Racing it has launched the Race Against Climate Change platform, which aims to accelerate the transition to renewable energy and the proliferation of electronic vehicles. By applying the same Genpact technology used to win on race day, the team has automated the process for monitoring its carbon-footprint. By regularly supplying automated reports to sustainability partner the Carbon Trust, Envision Virgin Racing became the first team in Formula E to earn carbon-neutral accreditation. “We’re the greenest team on the greenest grid,” says Jennifer Babington, operations director and general counsel and Envision Virgin Racing. “This is guilt-free, environmentally conscious motorsport and the technologies that we’re establishing on the track will have a direct impact on society as a whole.”
