Dubai: A top official connected with the world of Formula One has predicted that continuous innovations in the sport can only take the sport to the next level.
The F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the final round on the 2017 F1 World Championship, will witness the crowning of a new F1 Connectivity Innovation Prize champion with a cash prize of $50,000 and a trophy.
The award — with two separate challenges — was announced at the end of last month by Tata Communications, the official connectivity provider to F1 and the connectivity supplier of Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport.
The closing date for the first challenge is June 15, while the second challenge will commence from July 13 in the run-up to the British GP.
“We had launched a programme within the company called ‘Shape The Future’ that encourages our employees to come up with newer ideas as they are the ones tuned into the pulse of our customers. And since innovation is key to our DNA, we launched FCIP, a separate initiative in collaboration with Formula One Group and Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport, which allows the sport’s fans to leverage latest digital innovations to impact the future of F1,” Srinivasan C.R., Senior Vice President, Global Product Management & Data Centre Services at Tata Communications, told Gulf News.
This season, the focus of the award will be on the Internet of Things (IoT) with F1 fans and technology enthusiasts required to come up with IoT solutions that could be used by the team to deliver peak performance on the circuit. Judges, including reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton will pick three winners from each of the two challenges of the Connectivity Innovation contest. The six winners will get free trips for the Abu Dhabi race, where the grand prize winner will be announced.
In addition to a direct deal with F1 in providing solutions, Tata Communications entered into an agreement as official-managed connectivity supplier to world champions Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport. Through this deal, the provider has trebled speed of data transfer for the team, enabling real-time communication between the trackside and the team’s factory in the UK while paving the way for the team to develop new and innovative means of using available data.
“Technology is constantly improving and we are innovating all the time. We have multiple ways of offering communication solutions and as technology keeps progressing, we continue to innovate our solutions to help better the experience for spectators and fans,” Srinivasan said.
“The ultimate winner in all these innovations are the fans,” he added
