Why the NFL drafted Microsoft’s gen AI for the league’s next big play

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John Kell is a contributing

The NFL and Microsoft have been sharing a technology playbook for 12 years. But the latest drive will feature more generative artificial intelligence.

On Wednesday, the pair unveiled a multiyear partnership extension that includes the deployment of 2,500 Microsoft Surface Copilot+ personal computers, devices with built-in AI features that will be available to the league’s 32 clubs, roughly 1,800 players, and more than 1,000 coaches and

What makes the AI PC unique is that it features a specialized processor called a neural processing unit, or NPU, which allows these devices to run AI workloads locally. Vendors tout these devices for their ability to run AI workloads more efficiently than if data was sent to the cloud or a mainframe server.

The NFL says a new feature on these devices, built with GitHub Copilot, allows users to pull critical information about the state of play on the field and use data to respond in close to real-time to craft the optimal attack or defensive tactic.

“There’s literally seconds in order to process information in between plays or in the coaches’ booth, so that the speed at which the device can do the AI processing is vital,” says Aaron Amendolia, the NFL’s deputy chief information officer. “We can’t go back and forth to the cloud. We can’t wait 30 seconds for your prompt to return a result.”

The prior generation of tablets used on the field allowed players and coaches to access offensive and defensive plays, as well as various camera angles to ascertain how players lined up in the field. In the booth, even with Surface devices, math was frequently done using a pen and paper. But with AI PCs, the NFL expects to automate the data that’s flowing to devices on the field, removing some of the manual toggling that was required previously, while also combining Excel and AI to perform calculations in the booth.

Technology has been a vital team player improving both the viewing experience for fans and play on the field. Throughout the course of the league’s century-long history, key milestones have included the first televised game in 1939, an instant replay system added in 1986, and more recently, Amazon Web Services’ analytics and machine learning deployed to better understand where players are more likely to get injured and react

Amendolia says the league coaches teams on what solutions are best, but ultimately empowers clubs to make the most of their own IT purchasing decisions. The NFL is far more assertive in setting governance policies around key technology pillars like cybersecurity, data standards, and privacy.

There are some exceptions where the league will issue a mandate. The Surface tablets, as an example, are required and were first deployed over a decade ago to improve on-field communication after the NFL and Microsoft struck an initial $400 million deal in 2013. That investment allowed the league to finally retire printers and paper that were used to keep track of plays.

“The clubs are not choosing that technology,” says Amendolia. “They’re giving input into how that ultimate experience is.”

The latest Microsoft hardware integrates well into the NFL’s ecosystem that includes the productivity tools suite Microsoft 365, Teams, and a 5G private network built with Verizon. Sideline tablets are also powered

Amendolia says generative AI is a new layer of technology that builds upon the league’s past investments in machine learning. One use case that the NFL has embraced is a multimodal generative AI search tool that allows the sponsorship department to comb through mounds of data and pull up the exact assets they may need. Previously, this system relied on meta-tagging images, in which key words and descriptions were manually added to each

Externally, one application of generative AI debuted this year on OnePass, the league’s mobile app that manages tickets and shares event information with fans. Amendolia says that the NFL has made responses more conversational, answering queries with natural language when a fan wants to know the best place to get food in the stadium.

“The idea is that our fans are going to start to have their experience personalized through AI,” says Amendolia.

John Kell

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- Airrosti is seeking a chief technology officer, based in San Antonio, Texas. Posted salary range: $200K-$230K/year.

- Sol de Janeiro is seeking a head of technology, based in New York City. Posted salary range: $250K-$300K/year.

- Copilot Money is seeking a head of engineering, based in New York City. Posted salary range: $230K-$260K/year.

- VisionSpark is seeking a head of technology, based in Owensboro, Kentucky. Posted salary range: $180K-$200K/year.

Hired:

- FedEx (No. 49 on the Fortune 500) announced the appointment of Vishal Talwar as chief digital and information officer and president of FedEx Dataworks, where he will oversee the shipping company’s digital transformation. Talwar previously served as senior managing director and chief growth officer of consulting firm Accenture Technology. FedEx’s prior CDIO, Sriram Krishnasamy, abruptly departed from the role in July following an internal investigation.

- Kohl’s (No. 261 on the Fortune 500) named Steven Dee as CTO, overseeing all technology and information platforms to oversee the retailer’s omnichannel business. Prior to joining Kohl’s, Dee led technology operations at athletic gear giant Nike and retailer J. Crew. He also has 12 years of leadership experience at professional services company Accenture, where he worked with consumer goods and retail clients.

Every Friday morning, the weekly Fortune 500 Power Moves column tracks Fortune 500 companies C-suite shifts—see the most recent edition.

- Cohere, the Canadian AI startup that raised $500 million last week, appointed Joelle Pineau as chief AI officer to oversee the company’s research and product development. Pineau joins Cohere after previously serving as VP of AI research at Meta. She is also a professor at Montreal research university McGill.

- Gray Media has promoted Bob Kroeger as CTO, effective immediately, succeeding David Burke, who retired at the end of July and will continue to advise the TV broadcasting company until the end of 2025. Kroeger joined Gray Media as CIO at the end of 2024 and prior to that, held technology leadership positions at WSMV (NBC) Nashville, WOIO/WUAB (CBS/CW) Cleveland, and WXIX (FOX) Cincinnati.

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- Storyful announced the appointment of Roy Robinson as chief product and technology officer, joining the social news agency after most recently serving as chief product officer at customer referral and influencer marketing company Mention Me. Storyful is a division of The Wall Street Journal publisher News Corp.

- Lincoln Investment Planning appointed Jason Estes as chief information and technology officer, joining the broker-dealer after most recently serving as chief information and digital officer at financial planning company First Command Financial Services.