Let’s face it, this is the million-pound-question that everybody is asking nowadays. Well, the question is more generally applied to all aspects of reality, but let’s focus on horse races here.
Can artificial intelligence really predict how a race is going to unfold? And more importantly, is it possible to use AI to our own advantage, ideally by winning bigger and more often?
Let’s dive into this complex but fascinating topic.
What are the Mechanics of AI Predictions?
Firstly, how does AI work? What are the mechanics of its predictions? This is an important consideration to make when we look to use AI as our betting ally (provided that it’s possible at all).
In the context of someone looking to bet horse racing, AI systems are trained to use historical data, which may include
- Horse performance metrics: factors such as speed, stride, sectional times, and previous past results are all taken into consideration by AI tools
- Human factors: jockeys’ race style, the trainer’s history, and even the human’s physical features and injuries are all put into analysis
- Environmental influences: the weather, track conditions, and race-day variables can have an impact on the horse’s performance and the race’s results
- External factors: a horse could experience an injury during the warmup, or there could be a last-minute substitution, AI systems try to foresee any changes that could cause different results
There are some evident advantages associated with AI. As AI can analyse and provide possible outcomes based on a huge cluster of data, it’s possible for a bettor to receive insights that are hard to see for the human eye.
Besides, AI uses machine learning models that are able to simulate complex scenarios and provide a variety of possible outcomes based on probabilities. The ability to simulate multiple race scenarios is a tool that could come in handy, but it has its limitations.
However, before delving into the limits, let’s focus on its advantages.
Advantages of AI in Horse Races
For someone looking for a tool that can increase the accuracy rate of a bet, artificial intelligence systems come with a handful of advantages that can have a significant impact. Some of the most important are
- Data-driven insights: the first and most remarkable advantage is AI’s ability to uncover trends, stats, and possible outcomes based on hidden patterns and converging factors
- Fast predictions: this is the other most notable aspect of AI, its ability to provide whoever is asking with fast predictions. Those analyses can be used both as pre-race bets and live race odds as soon as you notice something changing
- Factual analysis: humans have biases that can significantly influence the prediction made. It’s embedded in human nature, and we must live with it. However, AI can eliminate those biases and provide factual, “cold” results that don’t rely on subjective judgment
- Real-time analysis: up until two years ago, AI could only analyse information from the past without being able to draw from the present pool of information. However, nowadays, AI tools have advanced and become capable of processing real-time data. This implies that bettors of new tracks, or renewed ones like the Windsor Racecourse, can use AI to reduce the disadvantage given by the lack of historical data
These are some of the most obvious advantages associated with AI, but it’s not just sunshine and rainbows, AI also has some limitations that are important to know if you’re interested in using these tools as an aide in your betting strategy.
Limitations and Considerations
AI can be useful, but please be aware that it’s not a fool-proof system. Its impressive potential should never outsmart the fact that AI can make mistakes, too.
Some of its limitations include
- The data it relies on: AI can analyse huge clusters of data, but if the data is outdated or of poor quality, the outcomes are going to be vague and inaccurate
- Complexity of variables: AI is great, but it’s not perfect and it’s not able to take everything into account. There are unforeseeable factors that could impact the final outcome, and AI won’t be able to see them either
- New scenarios are not past scenarios: AI is very good at making predictions based on past results, but races can always take an unexpected turn
Please, be mindful of these limitations when betting and making predictions on horse races.