Life and Art from FT Weekend

The secret gamblers using AI to hack horse racing

04.14.2023 - By Financial TimesPlay

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This week, we go to a racetrack in Miami, Florida to drink some beers, place some bets, and discover how AI is changing the sport of horse racing. FT data journalist Oliver Roeder joins Lilah to talk about how the ancient sport is being upended by anonymous computer-assisted bets. These secretive gamblers are injecting billions of dollars into the pools, and aggressively tipping the odds, and it’s putting the whole sport at risk. -------------- Want to say hi? We love hearing from you. Email us at [email protected]. We’re on Twitter @ftweekendpod, and Lilah is on Instagram and Twitter @lilahrap.  -------------- Links: – Oliver’s piece on horse betting: https://on.ft.com/3UDrX1t  – Oliver’s on Twitter at @ollie  —------------- Our US edition of the FTWeekend Festival is back! Join Jamie Lee Curtis, Ta-Nehisi Coates, Alice Waters, your favourite FT writers, and more on May 20 in Washington, DC, and online. Register now and save $20 using promo code weekendpodcast at ft.com/festival-us Special offers for Weekend listeners, from 50% off a digital subscription to a $1/£1/€1 trial are here: http://ft.com/weekendpodcast. -------------- Original music by Metaphor Music. Mixing and sound design by Breen Turner and Sam Giovinco. 

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