Drive fan engagement with a stadium event where fans can talk directly with an AI Avatar.

About

Professional sports attract the attention of countless fans, but the experience has mostly remained viewing-focused, with limited opportunities for fans to participate directly. In particular, large stadium video boards have been used mainly for information delivery and video broadcasting, creating structural limitations in providing real-time communication with fans or personalized experiences.

KT Wiz, a professional baseball club in South Korea, introduced interactive events based on Perso Interactive technology to build an environment where KT fans can communicate directly with player-based AI Avatars, participate in events, experience content, and expand their fan experience all at once. In particular, AI content featuring foreign players speaking Korean was shown on the stadium’s large video board, delivering strong immersion and fun to fans, and this naturally spread as a viral element that became a hot topic on social media.

As a result, it led to increased on-site participation, expanded social media virality, and higher fan-experience immersion, achieving meaningful outcomes in both events and marketing.

Background for Adoption

As fan expectations for the stadium experience increased, the challenge of providing more than just watching the game was emerging across the sports industry. However, existing stadium operations remained limited to one-way information delivery through video boards, and there was no structure in place for fans to participate directly or experience personalized content.

In particular, for clubs with foreign players, there was also the issue that language barriers prevented narrowing the sense of distance between fans and players. Starting from the question, “Can fans who come to the stadium become participants rather than mere viewers of content?” the adoption of an AI-based interactive fan-experience solution was promoted.

Solution

Using Perso Interactive AI, they built an AI interaction system linked to the stadium’s large video board and stations. From the moment they arrive at the stadium, fans can chat in real time with player-based AI and participate in events, enjoying an experience where they become the main character of the content rather than simply watching the game.

By producing multilingual AI content in which foreign players speak Korean naturally, they created an environment that could reach more fans without language barriers. The immersive experience of feeling like talking directly with favorite player IP generated strong reactions among fans, and the content created in this process naturally led to a viral flow as fans voluntarily shared it on social media.

The on-site experience does not stop offline; it expands online. Promotion content linked to on-site events was designed to spread through social media, creating an online/offline virtuous cycle structure that delivered the excitement and content of the venue even to fans who could not attend in person.

Results

When AI content of a KT Wiz foreign player speaking Korean was shown on the stadium’s large video board, it drew a strong response from fans. Unexpected freshness and immersion led to natural sharing, resulting in a viral spread effect with social media views and shares increasing rapidly.

Fans who came simply to watch the game shifted from content consumers to active participants, improving both the overall atmosphere in the stadium and the quality of the fan experience. As content generated through the event was voluntarily shared online by fans, social media mentions increased. The spread effect, which began on-site, continued into digital spaces.

As a result, the club’s and sponsors’ brands were broadly exposed across online and offline channels along with the content, and AI-based interactive events became established as an effective means to strengthen both fan experience and brand marketing at the same time.

Recommended For

This case will be of interest to professional sports clubs, stadium operators, sports sponsorship marketers, and event planners who need to improve on-site experiences. Beyond sports, it can also be effectively applied in concerts, festivals, large-scale offline events, and other settings where fan experience is important.

Related article: ESTsoft and KT unveil AI Avatar at the pro baseball season opener... Foreign player “Rojas” greeting in Korean captivates more than 20,000 spectators!

You Might Be Wondering

Q. Can it be deployed on-site immediately without installation or separate development?

A. Yes. Perso Interactive AI can be deployed immediately on-site without separate development or infrastructure setup. However, if adding event information or customization is needed, desired development can be carried out through prior consultation. After development, station (kiosk) devices can be installed for immediate on-site operation.

Q. How are player portrait rights and IP usage managed?

A. IP is used safely based on consultation with the club and players, and the scope and method of use are clearly defined through prior contracts.

Q. How similar is the implementation to the actual player?

A. It is implemented as an AI Avatar reflecting the player’s appearance, voice, speaking style, and more, providing fans with an immersive feeling as if they were talking to the real player.