In a sport like Formula One, milliseconds make all the difference.
Just to underline that, one of the qualifying sessions in the run up to the last Austrian Grand Prix saw less than 0.8 seconds separate the lap times of the fastest 20 cars.
It was a record at the time but you can expect that digit to drop significantly in the coming years.
This upsurge in competitiveness comes as a direct result of the correct analysis of the choicest chunks gleaned from a massive upsurge in data collection.
AI plays its part. In just a few years, this aspect of the sport has become as crucial to F1’s key players as the drivers themselves.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) sits centre stage here, having already played a pivotal role in transforming the racing calendar and acting as the sport’s digital backbone. The data it collects and shares has impacted everything from car design and race strategy to fan engagement.
These days, race cars are fitted with more than 300 sensors, generating around 1.1 million data points per second.
Similarly, there are sensors all around the track at strategic points providing more detail (if any were needed). This colossal amount of information is streamed to AWS, where it is processed and analysed in real-time. Thereafter, each team receives all the data about their own two vehicles, but none concerning their rivals.
This allows principals to make split-second decisions on everything from strategy and pit stops to energy deployment and tyre selection, all while the race is happening.
The whole process is called predictive modelling and, using historical data and current telemetry, AWS's AI machine learning models are able to predict various outcomes, even the best time for a potential overtaking manoeuvre.
“The partnership with AWS enables us to use machine learning and cloud technologies to improve step-by-step in every department," said Ferrari team principal Frederic Vavaseur. "This can be highly beneficial with everything from product improvements to increasing fan engagement.”
Crucially, one of the most compelling innovations is the ability of the system to generate graphics that simulate what would have happened if a team had made a different strategic decision – a different tyre compound choice, say – or even assessing the impact of a driver error.
Longer term, the information collated can be used to improve car design, with its ability to run thousands of simulations much more quickly than traditional on-track testing would allow – and also at a fraction of the cost.
AWS also offers interactive fan experiences like the Real-Time Race Track online tool, which allows fans to design their own F1 circuits, which are then analysed by company’s AI systems to produce projected lap times, top speeds, and even viable race stategies.
Spectators can also access F1 Insights, a series of real-time on-screen graphics that appear during broadcasts and provide those watching with information about driver performance, car capabilities, and team strategy.
Broadcasters are able to get in on the action, too, as the AWS’s Track Pulse tool can quickly mine an extensive stream of historical data to pull up facts and statistics to enliven commentary.
It’s all about what the company calls intelligent storytelling.
Ruth Buscombe-Divey is AWS’s motorsports ambassador as well as one of F1 TV’s most prominent presenters.
She says the changes that have happened within the sport recently are game changers for its future.
“If you applied the technologies that were being used to win races five years ago, it’s not going to work,” she says, describing what is happening now as a “data-driven battlefield” where those involved have to keep pushing both technological advances and how exactly to best use the spiralling amount of information being generated.
She sees the changes as crucial to the longevity of the sport.
Around 750 million people watch F1 over the course of a season, a figure she cites as being a “great motivation” in keeping up the momentum to make racing more competitive through the greater use of data.
Julie Souza leads sports globally for AWS, driving innovation in data not just in F1 but spectator-led content across the board.
She says she is often asked if the influx of new information is going to ruin fans’ enjoyment of what they’re watching.
However, she says it’s all about spectators watching sport the way they want to watch it and personalising the experience as much as possible.
“It’s very easy for people to go, gosh, this is going to make it too heavy for me,” she says with regard to the recent statistical influx.
“However, if we’re talking about this data in a way that alienates, we’re doing it wrong.
“The whole point is for this information to make people better understand what they’re seeing and enhance their appreciation of the exceptional abilities of the people involved.”
The next round of the F1 championship takes place on June 1 at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Spain.
Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
How to keep control of your emotions
If your investment decisions are being dictated by emotions such as fear, greed, hope, frustration and boredom, it is time for a rethink, Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at online trading platform IG, says.
Greed
Greedy investors trade beyond their means, open more positions than usual or hold on to positions too long to chase an even greater gain. “All too often, they incur a heavy loss and may even wipe out the profit already made.
Tip: Ignore the short-term hype, noise and froth and invest for the long-term plan, based on sound fundamentals.
Fear
The risk of making a loss can cloud decision-making. “This can cause you to close out a position too early, or miss out on a profit by being too afraid to open a trade,” he says.
Tip: Start with a plan, and stick to it. For added security, consider placing stops to reduce any losses and limits to lock in profits.
Hope
While all traders need hope to start trading, excessive optimism can backfire. Too many traders hold on to a losing trade because they believe that it will reverse its trend and become profitable.
Tip: Set realistic goals. Be happy with what you have earned, rather than frustrated by what you could have earned.
Frustration
Traders can get annoyed when the markets have behaved in unexpected ways and generates losses or fails to deliver anticipated gains.
Tip: Accept in advance that asset price movements are completely unpredictable and you will suffer losses at some point. These can be managed, say, by attaching stops and limits to your trades.
Boredom
Too many investors buy and sell because they want something to do. They are trading as entertainment, rather than in the hope of making money. As well as making bad decisions, the extra dealing charges eat into returns.
Tip: Open an online demo account and get your thrills without risking real money.
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
Martin Sabbagh profile
Job: CEO JCDecaux Middle East
In the role: Since January 2015
Lives: In the UAE
Background: M&A, investment banking
Studied: Corporate finance
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Meydan racecard:
6.30pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round 2 (PA) Group 1 | US$75,000 (Dirt) | 2,200 metres
7.05pm: UAE 1000 Guineas (TB) Listed | $250,000 (D) | 1,600m
7.40pm: Meydan Classic Trial (TB) Conditions | $100,000 (Turf) | 1,400m
8.15pm: Al Shindagha Sprint (TB) Group 3 | $200,000 (D) | 1,200m
8.50pm: Handicap (TB) | $175,000 (D) | 1,600m
9.25pm: Handicap (TB) | $175,000 (T) | 2,000m
10pm: Handicap (TB) | $135,000 (T) | 1,600m
Brief scoreline:
Crystal Palace 2
Milivojevic 76' (pen), Van Aanholt 88'
Huddersfield Town 0
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
The specs
Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: From Dh139,000
On sale: Now
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The Scale for Clinical Actionability of Molecular Targets
Fifa Club World Cup quarter-final
Esperance de Tunis 0
Al Ain 3 (Ahmed 02’, El Shahat 17’, Al Ahbabi 60’)
THE LIGHT
Director: Tom Tykwer
Starring: Tala Al Deen, Nicolette Krebitz, Lars Eidinger
Rating: 3/5
Ipaf in numbers
Established: 2008
Prize money: $50,000 (Dh183,650) for winners and $10,000 for those on the shortlist.
Winning novels: 13
Shortlisted novels: 66
Longlisted novels: 111
Total number of novels submitted: 1,780
Novels translated internationally: 66
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
