PlayVision

What do they actually do

PlayVision is a web platform that turns uploaded basketball game or practice video into automated player tracking, play tags, searchable timelines, and advanced player/team metrics using computer vision and AI. Coaches and analysts get dashboards, exports, and an AI assistant to query film. A full game is typically processed in about 1–2 hours, with faster priority processing for higher tiers, and the company also offers a transfer‑portal scouting database with player profiles and rankings (features/FAQ, pricing).

The product is aimed at college and pro programs and is live for the 2025–2026 season; PlayVision says it has partnered with Division‑1 programs and is onboarding more teams (YC page, LinkedIn).

Who are their target customer(s)

• Division‑1 college coaches and film coordinators: They spend many staff‑hours breaking down film and need faster, reliable tags, tracking and a searchable timeline to prep opponents and review their team efficiently (features/FAQ).
• Professional team coaches and analytics staff: They want high‑quality player tracking and metrics without the cost/installation of fixed tracking systems, and need a camera‑agnostic, cloud workflow that feeds existing analytics pipelines (3rd‑party analysis).
• College recruiters and transfer‑portal scouts: They vet large numbers of prospects from disparate video sources and need a searchable database with standardized metrics to shortlist and compare players (transfer portal).
• Athletic directors and program decision‑makers: They must justify new tools against budgets and staffing, so they focus on clear ROI, contract terms, and integrations with current video/analytics workflows (YC, pricing).
• Fans and casual subscribers: They want access to rankings and customizable metrics without team licenses, so they need an affordable, easy subscription (pricing).

How would they acquire their first 10, 50, and 100 customers

• First 10: Offer season‑long pilots to interested Division‑1 programs with a coach/analyst champion, priority processing, a short onboarding checklist, and commit to track two success metrics (weekly time saved; tag accuracy) plus a testimonial (YC/LinkedIn, features/FAQ).
• First 50: Convert pilots to paid contracts via conference bundles and add‑ons (transfer‑portal access, priority processing). Run targeted outbound to athletic directors using pilot case studies and ROI, leaning on the no‑hardware workflow to compete with installed systems (positioning, features).
• First 100: Add channel partnerships (video platforms, recruiting services, conference offices) and a self‑serve path for smaller programs/fans (promote $29.99/mo fans tier, pay‑per‑game uploads). Hire regional AEs and launch a referral incentive to expand within conferences (pricing, features).

What is the rough total addressable market

Top-down context:

The global sports analytics market was estimated at about $4.47B in 2024 and is forecast to grow rapidly through 2030, with basketball among the key team sports segments (Grand View Research, press note).

Bottom-up calculation:

Core U.S. college TAM: ~361 Division‑1 men’s programs plus ~351 Division‑1 women’s programs ≈ ~712 programs (Wikipedia, NCSA women’s D1 count). Assuming one team license per program at an average $20k/year for automated video‑to‑tracking/analytics, TAM ≈ $14.2M. Pro and international teams would expand this by additional tens of millions, depending on adoption and pricing.

Assumptions:

• Focus on Division‑1 programs only; excludes D2/D3, junior colleges, and international clubs.
• Average annual team license of ~$20k for video‑to‑tracking/analytics SaaS (mid‑market pricing; actual enterprise deals may vary).
• One license per program; transfer‑portal/fans subscriptions considered incremental and not included in the core TAM.

Who are some of their notable competitors

• Second Spectrum (Genius Sports): Enterprise optical tracking and analytics used by NBA teams; competes on precision tracking and league relationships, but requires league/arena integrations rather than upload‑based workflows (announcement).
• Synergy (Sportradar): Established video tagging, scouting and coaching platform with a large video library; strong in traditional scouting workflows over automated CV tracking from raw uploads.
• Hudl (Assist / Focus): Widely used capture and breakdown tools (camera + human/AI tagging) focused on team workflows; more manual analyst support vs. PlayVision’s automated tracking + AI querying.
• ShotTracker: Hardware sensors + analytics for live practice/game data; delivers near‑real‑time stats where teams accept installed sensors, contrasting with camera‑only SaaS.
• Stats Perform / SportVU: Installed arena camera tracking historically used by the NBA; very high‑fidelity positional data with league integrations, but requires arena installations and commercial deals.