Ineos hope for AI inspiration with Netcompany deal

Ineos hope for AI inspiration with Netcompany dealImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Ineos have won 16 races so far this seasonByMatt WarwickBBC Sport senior journalistPublished28 April 2026, 10:31 BSTUpdated 3 hours agoIneos Grenadiers hope to utilise artificial intelligence to return to the top of cycling after agreeing a new deal with Danish IT supplier Netcompany. The team will be known as Netcompany-Ineos Cycling Team from next week's Giro d'Italia, and the five-year partnership means their annual budget will increase significantly to bring it in line with the sport's so-called 'super teams' such as that of current four-time Tour de France champion Tadej Pogacar's UAE-Team Emirates-XRG.The British team achieved record success as Team Sky and Ineos, winning seven Tours de France between 2012 and 2019, two Giro d'Italia (2018 and 2021) and two Vuelta a Espana Grand Tours (2011 and 2017)."I think we'll get back to the top of the sport again - it's really exciting," director of racing and 2018 Tour de France champion for Team Sky Geraint Thomas told BBC Sport, adding: "The team has evolved a lot over the years - this is definitely, 3.0."Another Sunday In Hell: The brutal race that thwarts the greatsPublished13 AprilPogacar wins third-straight Liege-Bastogne-Liege titlePublished1 day agoCan AI decode 'blizzard of data' to topple Pogacar?The money behind Pogacar's UAE-Team Emirates-XRG comes from the region's oil resources, while other big-budget teams include the Netherlands' Visma-Lease a Bike of two-time Tour winner Jonas Vingegaard, and Germany's Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe who have Belgian superstar and Olympic road and time trial champion Remco Evenepoel.In the past three seasons, Ineos Grenadiers have fallen further behind those teams in terms of budget, overall wins and UCI points amassed.Alongside their competitors' rise was the arrival of a peerless talent in Pogacar; the Slovenian has won 112 races across a seven-year elite career, which included the 2020 Tour de France, one year after Ineos' last win with Colombia's Egan Bernal.Put simply, Pogacar has the racecraft and strength to accelerate away from, and outlast, any opponent in almost any race.What Ineos hope will make the difference is using Netcompany's AI data platform Pulse, an "AI-driven orchestration platform" which uses data for "solutions in real-time decision-making", according to the Danish compan,y which manages data for HMRC and Heathrow Airport, and whose CEO and co-founder Andre Rogaczewski says is "a company fighting for Europe's digital sovereignty"."For me, I struggle to turn my Apple TV on," says Thomas. "So I'm not going to say I'm tech-savvy, but information you want in one place quickly or for a [sporting director] or trainer or nutritionist to make decisions quickly for an athlete - that's where the benefit will be."I feel like I started [my career] at a time when I just had a heart-rate strap. Now it's all data with numbers here, there and everywhere. It's like a blizzard of data, and sifting through it - anything to help narrow that down and give more of an idea of what is happening is a good thing."Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Thomas has been at the team since they were founded by Brailsford, right, who returned as team principal at last year's Tour de FranceMore money, more Tour de France titles?Following the success of the 'marginal gains' era of the past decade - in which the team exploited small, incremental improvements in…

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