For decades, sportspeople have been getting fitter, faster and reaching ever-higher levels of performance. But as the margin between winning and losing shrinks, athletes are turning to technology to make the difference.

In this new season of Tech Tonic, Josh Noble explores how advanced ‘supershoes’ are helping to break marathon records, how young players are using AI to catch the eye of recruiters in the ultra-competitive world of American football, and how UFC is finding new ways to keep fighters healthier for longer.

This season of Tech Tonic is hosted by Josh Noble and produced by Josh Gabert-Doyon. The senior producer is Edwin Lane and the executive producer is Topher Forhecz. Sound design by Breen Turner and Sam Giovinco. Original music by Metaphor Music. The FT’s head of audio is Flo Phillips.

Clips: BBC, British Pathé, MMA World, Fight Network, @SportsRecruits

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Are technological advances in sport leaving athletes, fans and competition itself better off? Or are they undermining the spirit of sport? With the World Cup underway, the FT’s sports editor Josh Noble presents a three-part series looking at how tech is transforming sports, from AI-enabled scouting and automated refereeing, to supershoes and performance-enhancing drugs.

This season of Tech Tonic is hosted by Josh Noble and produced by Josh Gabert-Doyon. The senior producer is Edwin Lane and the executive producer is Topher Forhecz. Sound design by Breen Turner and Sam Giovinco. Original music by Metaphor Music. The FT’s head of audio is Flo Phillips.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Zuckerberg created the world’s biggest social media company in Facebook, before deciding the future lay in the metaverse. Now he’s spending hundreds of billions of dollars to transform Meta again, this time into an AI company. Will it work? Murad Ahmed speaks to FT tech reporters Cristina Criddle and Hannah Murphy about Zuckerberg’s efforts to catch up in the AI race, and whether his vision of ‘personal superintelligence’ will win over consumers.

FT articles free to read:

Inside Mark Zuckerberg’s turbulent bet on AI

Meta releases first AI model since Zuckerberg’s spending spree

Meta to mine AI interactions to help target advertising

Tech Tonic is hosted by Murad Ahmed and produced by Edwin Lane. The executive producer is Topher Forhecz. Sound design by Breen Turner and Sam Giovinco.

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Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.