Roanuz Softwares: sports intelligence and technology company using artificial intelligence

A combination of stories, myths, facts and emotions give meaning to a human being’s life. We’ve inherited a multitude of beliefs, values and principles from our parents, relatives and friends. Coupled with the development of science and mathematics based education, we have learnt that in order to make sense of the world around us, it is better to focus on things that matter. Things like, health, learning and working productively, in order to become economically useful.

Post the second world war, with the birth of modern capitalism which increasingly depended on science and technology for economic growth and consumerism, was born another phenomenon, namely the increasing role of art, music, sports and entertainment, in order to give meaning to one’s life.

Sports is unique is the sense that, it is deeply personal as well as communal, stoking passions and grace in equal measure, while promoting values like respect, teamwork and dedication to one’s skill. Modern sport is in a flux. As technology begins to dominate more and more individuals’ lives, sports organizations have had to rethink their business models to make themselves relevant in the face of a relentless onslaught of other forms of entertainment spearheaded by technology giants and other content creators.

In order to be relevant, they need the help of organizations who not only understand what the sports business is all about, but also help them become technically sound while continuing to engage their consumers. Today, we write about such a firm, Roanuz Softwares.

Give a brief info about your startup?

Founded by Anto Binish Kaspar, Roanuz Softwares is a sports intelligence and technology company that makes applications and services using artificial intelligence. Cricket API is a successful product of Roanuz that has served over 1 billion requests in its first year itself. At present over 350 applications use the Cricket API. Roanuz has processed over 1.2 million balls until now. And the API has been fed with approximately 5-million records as input and is taking around 1,500 milliseconds to respond.

“Roanuz provides the right solution for every customer requirement in the sports field. Many use cases are gaining huge user base using our API. When customers want to implement a use case, there are difficulties in getting the right solution providers. We are equipped to provide a conquire solution,” he states. Roanuz has partnered with various brands and offered their product to run IPL campaigns, the key ones being Zomato, RCB, and BookMyShow. Roanuz has also recently launched World Cup Chatbot, football API, Kabaddi API and planning to launch a few more sports APIs .

What made you start Roanuz and what problems does it solve?

AI has been transforming various sectors across the world. But little did anyone think of its innovative application in the sports and gaming industry, like the way it is shaping up now. It is people like Anto Binish Kaspar, Founder and CEO, Roanuz Softwares Pvt Ltd, who did the unthinkable. Anto, along with his diverse team, has developed Roanuz, India’s pioneering AI-driven fantasy sports platform. Before, Roanuz Cricket API there was no way for a startup to subscribe to quality data at an affordable cost and that too without a long-term contract. Quality data, Live Stats, A.I powered, Affordable Cost and no contract – this combination is extremely unique and it’s what is needed for the industry to grow.

Roanuz creates opportunities;

Roanuz makes sports data available at an affordable price.

Startups can engage with their customers through cricket live scores by using Roanuz Sports APIs.

An independent person can build his /her desired fantasy league apps with help of Roanzu APIs.

 

Tell us about yourself, your previous jobs/ventures? What were you doing before this startup?

Prior to founding Roanuz, Anto has worked at senior positions at EC Software as a Solutions Architect in Stockholm, Sweden (Apr 2010 – May2012) and at EC Software as Team Lead in Chennai, India (Apr 2006 – Apr 2010). During this period he got significant exposure by working with global brands like IKEA and Oriflame. Anto has done his B.E in Computer Science and has a profound understanding of AI technology and its application. He has 13 years of experience in application programming, AI, and web application architecture.

 

Where is your startup based out of? Why do you think that is the best place for you?

We are a Chennai based company, and our business office is located in Iceland. We have a data office at Trivandrum. We love the beach and its environment. Peace is significant to work. Hence, our team gets positive vibes at the workplace.

As a startup founder, what are you paranoid about? What keeps you awake at night?

It was a big step for me to jump into the ocean of entrepreneurship. It has never been easy for any entrepreneur and it was no exception for me. It was challenging during the early days since AI (Artificial intelligence) was a very new concept to India. How would it be received by customers was a question that kept me awake most of the night. Sports data, fantasy League concept is fairly new to the market. But I was prepared to face the challenges that may come during my journey. After seven long years, we have established ourselves as one of the best sports data providers in the global arena and I am very proud of my team and myself too.

Who are your competitions and how are you better than them?

We have global competitors like Opta and sports radar, but we have become one of the best sports data providers domestically for the last seven years through various new product launches like cricket chatbot, world cup chatbot, Kappadi API, Football API, etc. We provide much faster live score updates and astute prediction analysis. We believe that our Customers  satisfaction is important to our business, therefore our team will always be reachable for any back end support during the matches and the contest.

How hard is it to have a work-life balance as a startup founder and how do you manage it?

It had never been an easy journey for me. I always make sure I give importance to both. Whenever I’m at work, my entire concentration would be on my work. I have a strong relationship with my better half and we understand each other. When not at work, I completely dedicate my time to my family, without any interruption from work. I plan everything in advance and I create a work calendar that I share with my team. They schedule work according to my availability.

Have you raised funding? If yes, then we would like to know the details. If no then please tell us if you are looking to raise.

We are a bootstrap company and growing at 270% every year. At the moment, we are not looking for any funding, but soon we would definitely need funding. Probably, after a year, we will analyse how much we should look for, based on market conditions.

 

What’s the biggest misconception people have about you? Why do they have that? What’s the reality?

Initially we were looked at as a live score website or portal. It was difficult for consumers to understand sports data and how it works. It took us longer than expected to convince them. But it was a cakewalk when they understood the depth of our concept. From inception, our aim was to create an AI-driven sports data provider, support the sports industry’s travel with AI and make things much quicker than traditional methods. We’ve achieved this to some extent, but as a company we still have a long way to go.

 

What gets you excited about this company?

Primarily, the concept of Cricket API itself excites me, since I have always been a sports enthusiast. Working with my team who are equally excited about the company and the concept is something I look forward to everyday. My team is equally passionate about achieving greater heights in the industry that it pushes me to innovate more.

Tell us how a day in your life looks like? Your schedule for a day right from the time you get up till you hit the bed at night.

I am both a night owl and early bird, depending on the need. I always schedule my work in advance and try to finish it on time. I do basic exercises in the morning, then read a little and check my day’s schedule. I prefer to spend quality time with my team during the first half of the day to understand where are we now and what needs to be done for the day. During closing hours, I analyse how the day went for me and whether I was on schedule. I do a bit of reading before going to bed as well.