Industry News

CherryBot AI hailed as a success for Bournemouth

AFC Bournemouth fans have praised a new artificial intelligence (AI) system at the English Premier League football club’s Vitality Stadium after its rollout last month.

‘CherryBot’ has been designed to boost supporters’ matchday experience at the venue, allowing them to ask questions, interact with other fans, access various video highlights and enter an exclusive ‘selfie’ competition.

The system went live for Bournemouth’s clash with Liverpool last month and, according to the Bournemouth Echo newspaper, fans have uploaded more than 400 selfie pictures, with over 1,150 unique Facebook users interacting and more than 19,200 messages sent through the new chatbot.

In addition, the system recorded more than 3.2 million impressions across social media from launch through to midnight on the matchday. Bournemouth could now make CherryBot a permanent fixture, while other Premier League clubs are expected to trial similar systems in the coming months.

Adam Greenwood, chief executive of Greenwood Campbell, a digital agency that worked with Microsoft and Bournemouth University on the development of the service, said: “We wanted to build something unique and fun, using the latest technology, that could enhance fans’ experience in the stadium and around the world.

“We believe that we have done that and the future for CherryBot and other matchday engagement bots is looking very bright indeed.”

Jamie Dalton, technical evangelist of Microsoft UK, added: “CherryBot has been an exciting project to be involved in and it’s great to see the latest edition to the squad being so well received by AFC Bournemouth fans.

“Using Microsoft Azure AI cognitive services, we’re delighted to see how CherryBot engaged and entertained fans on matchday.”

Image: Robin Jones/Digital South/SilverHub