Stupa Sports, the Gurugram-headquartered sports technology and analytics company, announces that its Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered Instant Review System (IRS), has been certified by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) for all its sanctioned tournaments, marking a new era of democratization of elite officiating, in the Olympic sport.
A letter to the effect was sent by the global Governing Body’s Christopher Trenholme, Events Director-Technical Operations, to Megha Gambhir, Cofounder and CEO, Stupa Sports, last week, after a rigorous official homologation process which concluded in December last year.
In his letter, Trenholme also outlines the dates in September and December when the Stupa Sports IRS were tested, their results, and that, in conclusion, BWF’s standards were exceeded, with the Stupa IRS achieving a 99% accuracy rate against the required 98% benchmark.
Post this certification, BWF has also moved to include the Stupa IRS into the BWF Equipment Approval Scheme. Furthermore, the BWF has notified its Continental Confederations that the Stupa IRS is now available for deployment under their jurisdictions, paving the way for rapid global adoption.
Megha Gambhir, Co-founder and CEO, Stupa Sports said, “Passing the BWF homologation test is the result of months of rigorous engineering work, and it validates our core belief that world-class sports technology does not have to be expensive or complex to deploy.
“Our system brings accurate, AI-powered decision review to Badminton tournaments that could never afford traditional solutions. Our technology is already live across other sports, having deployed decision review and advanced AI analytics in Pickleball, Volleyball, and Padel. Going forward, we are focused on rolling this out across markets and continuing to build technology that makes professional-grade officiating the norm, not the exception,” Gambhir added.
Existing review technologies in badminton have historically been expensive, requiring significant infrastructure investment and complex on-site setups. The cost-effective Stupa IRS has now made it accessible to smaller tournaments, lower-tier competitions, or developing markets.
Designed for quick deployment with minimal equipment, the lightweight system can be set up at a fraction of the cost of traditional solutions without compromising on precision. During the BWF’s testing, the system proved its reliability by achieving a 99% accuracy rate.
To achieve this, the system utilises multiple high-speed cameras strategically placed around the court to capture the shuttlecock’s movement in real-time. Advanced Computer Vision models process this live feed to track the shuttle’s full trajectory and precisely identify where it lands.
The output is delivered instantly, equipping officials and players with clear, data-backed decisions on line calls.
This homologation signifies Stupa Sports’ further consolidation within the global sports ecosystem. Much like its recent partnerships—including deploying Stupa Cast for the Generali Hexagon Cup Padel tournament, serving as the Data and Technology Partner for the Pickleball Champions League Asia Finals and providing AI analytics for Major League Table Tennis and the Prime Volleyball League—this BWF certification highlights the demand for AI-driven technology.
It reinforces Stupa’s position as a firm leading tech innovation across multiple sports.
