As viewers around the world tuned-in to watch teams compete in the 2024 Americas Cup, they were treated with a new visual that was never shown before: the wind. 

Of course, experienced crew members on the boats and some sharp-eyed viewers at home can read the wind by looking at the water, but most casual observers don't have that ability. When sponsors of the event asked the racing teams what technology they thought would be interesting to add, one CEO said he wanted to make the wind visible in the broadcast. The idea was to make the experience more understandable for spectators, so when a boat went left or right, the commentators could explain more easily why the skipper had made that particular decision.

The solution was LiDAR, the same technology that enables autonomous vehicles to recognize their surroundings. The devices emitted 10,000 beams of light per second to measure particles in the air and returned the data to computers that analyzed it and created graphics to show exactly which way the wind was blowing and how fast.

It made the broadcast more enjoyable and understandable for viewers and will likely result in a larger, more engaged audience for future races.