It looks great – but is it real?

Richard Shaw CEO, SAPCA

Over the past few weeks we have received several enquiries that quote AI as the reason why they have got in touch with SAPCA. These have been, mainly, from people and businesses who are looking to invest in padel, or looking to find details on how to build padel courts. During their research, they’ve asked AI for further information, which in turn has sent them our way for technical guidance and further advice.

Maybe this development shouldn’t come as a surprise, given that the padel boom and the rise of AI have emerged roughly at the same time. There are, however, further links between AI and padel – and not all of them positive.

Look on LinkedIn for padel court importers and equipment suppliers and you will likely see plenty of AI-generated imagery. Some facility operators also use pictures created by AI to advertise their venues. We have also seen companies apply for SAPCA membership, using AI images to “showcase” their work. In short, the use of AI-generated visuals is widespread across the padel sector.

There are clear risks in this. Pictures created using AI can give a false expectation to those who see them – whether that is someone looking to invest in a padel court project or a player keen to find somewhere to play. When it comes to padel court installations, AI images can lure customers to trusting the competence of an “approved installer” – and often provide them with a false sense of what is possible.

A recent social media post showed a beautiful, canopied series of padel courts in an idyllic rural setting. Some of the comments below by fellow operators questioned, rightly, how the company had managed to achieve planning permission at such a location. The real answer is simple – you don’t need a planning permission for venues that only exist on servers.

If AI is smart enough to be pointing people in the direction of SAPCA, its members and its Codes of Practice, maybe it is showing real signs of intelligence after all

At our SAPCA Conference last month, we heard from a range of experts offer their insights on what they think will shape their particular field within the wider sports and play sector. One of the things that true experts are often quick to acknowledge and make clear – and we heard this at the conference – is the limit of their expertise. True thought leaders recognise that any real expertise, however proven, still has its boundaries. True intelligence is knowing the limits of one’s knowledge. It is what has driven scientific breakthroughs for centuries.

Our Codes of Practice are written by experts across different fields within the industry to ensure that expertise across facilities is available to operators, commissioners and interested bodies free of charge and easily accessible. All anyone needs to access them is an email address. This is part of efforts to keep them out of the scope of current AI algorithms and search practices – so the information within them won’t appear in results, which could then be distorted or misinterpreted.

The codes are the combination of countless hours given freely by SAPCA members and industry leaders, to help the sector continue to raise quality standards across the design, construction and maintenance of sports and play facilities. So, if AI is smart enough to be pointing people in the direction of SAPCA, its members and its Codes of Practice, maybe it is showing real signs of intelligence after all.