How AI is discovering athletes that human scouts miss | Richard Felton-Thomas (re-release)

Talent identification in sports often fails due to limited scouting resources, geographical barriers, and socioeconomic inequality. Sports scientist Richard Felton-Thomas addresses this by leveraging AI, computer vision, and smartphone technology to democratize talent discovery. By standardizing physical drills that can be recorded anywhere, the platform analyzes 22 key body segments to provide objective, benchmarkable data, allowing clubs to identify promising athletes regardless of their location. This approach has successfully surfaced hidden talent, such as a young player who secured a professional scholarship after being discovered via a shared community phone. Beyond soccer, this technology is expanding into other sports and medical applications, proving that universal access to data can effectively level the playing field and ensure that athletic potential is recognized globally rather than just in well-funded regions.