IRIS Clarity Isolates Voice, Removes Noise from Race Communications for Global INDYCAR Broadcasts
LONDON (Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023) – Leading AI voice isolation specialist IRIS Audio Technologies (IRIS Audio) is working with the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, North America’s premier open-wheel racing series, to eliminate background noise in real-time from the broadcasts of one of the loudest and most extreme sporting environments.
The NTT INDYCAR SERIES, which consists of 17 races across the United States and in Canada, is broadcast to millions of viewers globally. With IRIS Clarity, IMS Productions, which produces INDYCAR broadcasts, now provide crystal-clear radio transmissions, placing viewers right at the heart of the race action whether they are watching live on TV, using the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA or following the action across INDYCAR’s social media channels.
Trained on tens of thousands of hours of noise and human voice, IRIS Clarity’s AI-powered software can identify and isolate the voice and remove all noise in real time from all forms of digital communication. To achieve this with INDYCAR, IRIS Audio’s United Kingdom- headquartered team had to overcome multiple technology challenges, including individual race car setups, and catering to the wide variety of racetracks on the INDYCAR schedule, from high-speed ovals to complex street courses, which impact signal strength and audio quality depending on transmitter positioning.
The solution comes in the form of a custom IRIS Clarity plug-in for Dante, a computer network created by Audinate and used by IMS Productions that transmits audio with utmost fidelity. A significant upside to this implementation is that IRIS Clarity now works on all Dante-supported applications, including arenas and stadiums, recording studios, conference centers, theaters and more.
Jacobi Anstruther, CEO and Founder of IRIS Audio said: “We continue to be motivated by bringing our innovative technologies to the forefront of human performance. INDYCAR is the perfect arena to showcase and challenge our engineers. This is a great opportunity to demonstrate how clarity in mission-critical communications is not only vital for success and performance but also instrumental to experiencing the action in real-time.”
The partnership with INDYCAR follows IRIS Audio’s earlier audio partnerships with more integrations of IRIS Clarity to follow across a range of sporting and other use cases where mission-critical communications are essential to performance.
Kevin Sublette, IMS Productions President, said: “We are focused on getting viewers closer to the action, and there is nothing like listening in to the driver and pit crew audio to understand how a race is unfolding. With IRIS Clarity, we are able to do just that by removing the background noise and getting clearer audio from the drivers and race teams. We have been working to perfect the implementation since the start of this season and gave our partnership the green light after a successful weekend at the recent Indy 500.”
Rob Reng, CTO and Co-Founder of IRIS Audio said: “This was an extremely fun and challenging project to bring IRIS real-time background noise cancellation to an exciting and high-performance use case. IRIS technology paired with Dante audio transmission allows us to bring the audience right into the excitement of each race by clearly transmitting driver communications, letting them hear every important moment with Clarity. It's a fantastic showcase of how portable our SDK is, and how dozens of concurrent channels can be processed with AI technology on a single computer — something that simply wasn't possible before IRIS.”
About IRIS Audio Technologies
IRIS Audio Technologies is an audio technology company with a mission to enable the world to Listen Well. Our suite of patented products leverages decades of research into the effects of sound on the brain, prioritising focus, productivity, and wellness for all. By harnessing the science of sound, IRIS Audio dramatically improves how people experience audio across all digital platforms, from video meetings to streaming, podcasts to audiobooks, and multiple sectors including call centres, public services, and motor racing.
About INDYCAR
INDYCAR is the Indianapolis-based governing body for North America's premier open-wheel auto racing series, the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, and its developmental series, INDY NXT by Firestone. The NTT INDYCAR SERIES features an international field of the world's most versatile drivers – including two-time and reigning series champion Will Power, six-time series champion Scott Dixon, two-time series champion and reigning Indianapolis 500 winner Josef Newgarden and four-time “500” winner Helio Castroneves – who compete on superspeedways, short ovals, street circuits and permanent road courses. The 2023 season consists of 17 races in the United States and Canada and is highlighted by the historic Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge. The NTT INDYCAR SERIES, INDY NXT by Firestone, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and IMS Productions are owned by Penske Corporation, a global transportation, automotive and motorsports leader. For more information on INDYCAR and the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, please visit www.indycar.com. For more information on INDY NXT by Firestone, please visit www.indynxt.com.