Despite the uncertainty that still surrounds the eSports Olympics, the World Dance Sport Federation (WDSF) continues its efforts. It has announced a strategic partnership with Sidewalk Entertainment, a Korean startup specializing in real-time motion recognition. This agreement makes STEPIN, Sidewalk's exclusive AI-powered dance platform, the WDSF's official eSports platform.
« The aim is to introduce the essential value of competitive dance to a much wider audience, by significantly reducing barriers to access, underlines Kibong Kook, CEO of Sidewalk Entertainment Inc. Our vision is to make STEPIN the global digital gateway to competitive dance. A teenager who starts dancing with STEPIN in their bedroom could then go on to participate in national competitions., then evolve on the world stage governed by the WDSF, to finally join the Olympic arena. »
A competitive ecosystem will be gradually deployed on the platform, with global online qualifying events, then official national, continental and world championships. STEPIN uses a hybrid scoring system: the online qualifications, which involve a large number of participants, will be entirely managed by " objective and inviolable AI protocols ", while the elite finals will combine automated technical data with the human expertise of a jury.
« We assume the technical and operational responsibility so that national federations can focus on their core roles, namely governance and athlete development, adds Kook. Because STEPIN is a mobile application, young talents from regions untouched by existing competitive dance infrastructure are naturally drawn to the platform. National federations can thus identify these new emerging talents through data analysis and guide them towards the path leading to the national team. »
