We’re kicking off Fair Play, a recurring series spotlighting the teams using AI to widen access for people who have been left out. First up: OneCourt.
The Mission
OneCourt builds a handheld device that translates live sporting events into real-time tactile feedback, letting blind and low vision fans feel the movement of the ball, the position of the play, and the rhythm of the game as it happens, right alongside everyone else in the stadium.
The Moment
OneCourt just wrapped its work at a FIFA World Cup match in Vancouver, putting the device in the hands of fans for one of the biggest stages in sports. One of those fans, James Kwinecki, put it better than we could:
“I lost my vision when I was 21. Before that, sports were a huge part of my life… Using the OneCourt device at the FIFA World Cup match in Vancouver completely changed that experience for me. For the first time since losing my vision, I truly felt connected to the game. Being able to follow the movement of the ball through touch gave me an understanding of the action that I haven’t had in years. I wasn’t just listening to someone describe the match, I was experiencing it alongside everyone else in the stadium. What stood out most was the feeling of independence… It made me feel like a fan again, not just a spectator relying on someone else’s description.”
That’s the whole point. Not a workaround. A way back in.
What It Takes Behind The Scenes
Pulling this off at World Cup scale, with a small team, on a live and unforgiving stage, isn’t trivial. There’s no room for a missed play or a delayed signal when someone is relying on your device to feel the game in real time. OneCourt’s team leaned hard on AI-assisted engineering to build and monitor at that level, moving fast on development and standing up tiered, real-time monitoring so the team could support the event around the clock without being buried in false alarms or missed issues. It’s a good example of what’s possible when a small, mission-driven team has the right tools to move like a much bigger one.
Why We’re Close To This One
Aaron Edwards has spent the last several months in an advisory role with OneCourt’s team, part of Varium’s ongoing work helping mission-driven teams build and scale responsibly. It’s the kind of partnership we want more of: less about us, more about backing the people building things that genuinely change lives.
If you know a team building this way, tell us about them.