2023-08-03 19:35:00
DISPATCH — From facial recognition to connected lockers, via biosourced boards designed on 3D printers, digital technology is sweeping the world of board sports. Here are three start-ups looking to change surfing.
1. “My Sessions”
Bertrand Delaveau had the idea of ”My Sessions” in Morocco, observing a photographer offering his shots to surf camp enthusiasts. “I thought it would be easier to sell your photos directly on the Internet, avoiding running after unknown surfers on the beach, and thus expanding your potential clientele”, explains to AFP this surfer engineer, long expatriate in the hydrocarbon industry in Nigeria, Iraq or Qatar.
Using artificial intelligence (AI), “My Sessions” connects surfers directly and free of charge with photographers who have shot them from the beach. If the pictures find takers, the company “My Sessions” receives a commission on the transaction.
It is also “an additional source of income for photographers, who can earn 100 to 200 euros per ‘shoot’ quite easily”, says the founder of the start-up.
Initially launched in Paris, the company has been developing for three years in Capbreton (Landes) and has just joined forces with recognized AI specialists. “We need to improve the site to attract more photographers, because the demand is very strong on the side of surfers”, he underlines.
2. Sea Locker
In mid-July, “Sea Locker” launched its very first self-service surfboard rental station in a youth hostel in Hossegor (Landes).
“The idea was to solve transport problems for tourists and allow locals to test new equipment”, explains founder Nicolas Farolfi, winner of the 2022 call for innovation projects from Eurosima, the European association sliding sports manufacturers.
3.6 meters high and 1.6 m wide and deep, lockers allow you to collect your board 24 hours a day after having reserved it online using an application. When bringing her back after her surf session via an integrated QR code, the user must take a picture of her from several angles, so that the AI can check her condition.
Based in Hossegor, “Sea Locker” has entered into a partnership with sector giant Rip Curl, which is equipping it with boards for this premiere.
3. Wyve Surf
From their workshop in Anglet (Pyrénées-Atlantiques), Léo Bouffier and Sylvain Fleuri founded “Wyve Surf”. The product ? Translucent boards, printed in 3D, from biosourced plastic made from cane sugar, corn starch or beets.
“Thanks to our algorithm, we can generate boards adapted to each type of surfer, by modifying the structure, the flexibility, the mesh according to the weight and the capacities of each”, assures Léo Bouffier.
“Our idea is to produce locally, close to surfer communities, in the face of relocations to Asia,” he continues, planning to set up in California in 2025.
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