Inside the Spurs’ AI Playbook: From Fan Engagement to Community Impact

# AI Sports

# AI Adoption

# Community

Written by Chris Nicholson, Member of Global Affairs Staff at OpenAI

Chris Nicholson

At this week’s OpenAI Forum session, leaders from the San Antonio Spurs and Fresh Consulting showed what it looks like when a storied franchise treats AI as both a competitive edge and a community responsibility. The Spurs are the first NBA team to roll out ChatGPT across their entire business organization, and they are pairing that bold move with something rarer: a patient, values-driven approach rooted in integrity, success, and empathy.

Instead of starting with flashy automation, the Spurs began with listening. They surveyed their 500‑plus staff to understand real concerns, current usage, and desired usage of AI, then co‑created learning modules with OpenAI so every role, from data operations to HR, could get hands-on safely. A full‑org hackathon at their practice facility turned curiosity into momentum, with early wins like custom GPTs that help staff draft performance reviews, summarize complex decks, and clean data. What surprising is how quickly this cultural approach changed the conversation from “Will AI take my job?” to “How do we make this specific to our fans and our mission?”

That shift unlocked a wave of applied innovation. The team now uses a “fan voice” GPT to turn thousands of comments into clear, actionable insights, and another internal tool to analyze more than nine million data points on fan behavior around the arena concourse. Work that once consumed a full-time role now powers more personalized experiences, such as tailoring offers for a Gen Z fan visiting during the holidays. On the creative side, the Spurs and Fresh Consulting previewed a Sora‑powered “Ultra Drip Tunnel” experience that lets fans transform a simple photo into a cinematic walk through the players’ tunnel, complete with controlled camera moves, sound design, and brand‑safe visuals that still feel one‑of‑one.

Perhaps the most inspiring surprise is how deeply this work is tied to community impact. The Spurs invited local nonprofit leaders into the same AI literacy journey as their staff and are turning their former practice facility into a community hub where AI education will be part of the core curriculum. For an organization whose purpose is to “inspire humanity through sports and entertainment,” AI has become a new way to expand access, amplify local leaders, and bring fans even closer to the game.

We are grateful to the San Antonio Spurs, Fresh Consulting, and the wider OpenAI Forum community for showing how ambitious, human‑centered AI can look in practice!

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Inside the Spurs’ AI Playbook: From Fan Engagement to Community Impact

Written by Chris Nicholson, Member of Global Affairs Staff at OpenAI

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