By Sarah Handy, Staff Writer
It was announced on Tuesday morning that Hendrick Motorsports has extended it’s marketing and technical relationship with Microsoft Corporation.
The extended relationship between the two companies will have Microsoft continuing as the Official Cloud Partner of the 12-time NASCAR Cup Series champions organization for both the 2020 and 2021 racing seasons.
The new agreement includes new promotional assets, most notable the iconic Microsoft brand will make it’s debut as an associate sponsor on both the No. 48 and No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE teams in the NASCAR Cup Series.
Microsoft will continue to collaborate with Hendrick Motorsports on key technology projects such as data analysis capabilities, a speech-to-text solution and race simulation upgrades.
“We’re excited to build on the success of our longstanding marketing and technology partnership with Hendrick Motorsports,” said Mike Downey, principal software engineer at Microsoft.
“The organization, from the drivers to the race engineers, trusts in our innovative technology to give the team a competitive edge. As the sport evolves, we’ll continue to find new opportunities to promote our solutions and utilize Microsoft technology in the team’s quest for another championship.”
Hendrick Motorsports relies a great deal on Microsoft technologies, those technologies include Azure cloud services, Windows 10 and Office 365, in addition to artificial intelligence and machine learning.
Last year, HMS fully transitioned to Microsoft Teams for chat, meetings, calling and collaboration to analyze large amounts of data in real time and help guide decision-making during race events.
Hendrick Motorsports also rolled out custom data tools developed via the partnership to analyze large amounts of data in real time and help guide decision-making during race events.
“Success on the racetrack is a product of having world-class people and the finest tools and technology,” said engineer Alba Colón, director of competition systems for Hendrick Motorsports. “In today’s environment, the data available is almost infinite, and we must make split-second decisions utilizing all the information at our disposal. Our partnership with Microsoft allows us to quickly analyze that data and make the best choices. The technology also lets us communicate and collaborate more efficiently and effectively. It’s a powerful relationship that we are proud to extend and build on.”