SVG Sit-Down: Pixellot's Rob DeSalvo on the Automated-Production Revolution and a Booming Youth Sports Economy

SVG Sit-Down: Pixellot's Rob DeSalvo on the Automated-Production Revolution and a Booming Youth Sports EconomyAI powers the company's systems deployed for 150,000+ events a monthBy Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S.

Friday, September 19, 2025 - 12:19 pm

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Automated sports production has become one of the most transformative forces in the industry, unlocking broadcast-quality coverage for youth, amateur, and niche sports that previously lacked the resources for traditional crews. At the center of this movement is Pixellot, whose AI-powered systems deliver more than 150,000 live events each month across 19 sports worldwide.

SVG sat down with Rob DeSalvo, president, Pixellot North America, to discuss the company's shift from SaaS to AI as a Service, its role in fueling the booming youth-sports economy, and how agentic AI is reshaping the economics, accessibility, and future of live sports production.

Pixellot's Rob DeSalvo: We've moved to what we call AI as a Service. Instead of just offering software, we deliver intelligent AI agents that handle capture, analysis, editing, and distribution.

Pixellot was early to the automated-production game. How have your solutions evolved to meet the increasingly high expectations for live broadcasts, especially for lower-tier properties and events?

When Pixellot was founded, our mission was to bring professional-quality coverage to places that couldn't afford a production crew. Back then, just having a multi-angle broadcast from a local gym felt revolutionary. Expectations have changed dramatically. Fans now demand smooth panning, dynamic framing, real-time data overlays, and broadcast-level visuals even from grassroots competitions.

We've been able to keep pace, thanks to our open architecture, which lets us plug in new technology quickly, and because of our collaborations with Nvidia, which give us the processing muscle to manage millions of streams. The scale of our footprint means our AI learns from more games than anyone else, refining itself with every event. Pixellot transformed high school sports with our infrastructure and continues this revolution with youth and amateur sports.

As more amateur and niche sports gain visibility through automated production, what tools or strategies is Pixellot providing to help leagues and teams monetize content and engage fans?

Video has become part of an athlete's identity. We built our platform to support that reality and turn it into value. Coaches receive instant tactical breakdowns, players get automatic highlights, and families enjoy polished, sponsor-ready live streams.

What makes this powerful is how it's delivered. We've moved from the old SaaS model to what we call AI as a Service. Instead of just offering software, we deliver intelligent AI agents that handle capture, analysis, editing, and distribution, and we link our revenue to the success our partners achieve. It's turning video from a cost center into a growth engine.

We've heard a lot about Pixellot's shift from SaaS licensing to AIaaS. Why make that move, and what does it change for your customers?

SaaS made sense when we were simply providing software to accompany our industry-leading hardware. But today our AI agents are doing the work of full production teams. Not only do they follow the action with AI vision, tag the players, and understand the action on the pitch, but they also automatically break down the video into highlights and insights. And they get better with every game.

With that level of intelligence and accountability, it made sense to move to performance-based pricing. Instead of charging a flat license fee, we now align our business directly with our partners' success. It's a fundamental change in tone: we're no longer just vendors; we're collaborators with shared stakes in the outcome.

How does this shift tie into Pixellot's broader corporate strategy?

It clarifies who we are. We're not a camera company. The cameras are just where the data begins; the real value is in the automation, analytics, and monetization layers that sit above them.

That's B2B2C. We serve technology providers, venues, and leagues, but the value flows all the way to athletes, families, and communities. Every layer benefits from the intelligence our AI generates. It's what lets us scale from local clubs to national federations to global media platforms without changing our approach.

Youth sports is now a booming business, with millions of investment dollars pouring into the sector and organizations producing thousands of events per year. What role is Pixellot playing in this growth, and how do you see the industry evolving?

Youth sports has become one of the fastest-growing segments in the sports economy, and demand for high-quality coverage is accelerating. Parents expect it, athletes rely on it to get recruited, and sponsors see it as a huge opportunity. The problem is that most youth organizations lack the infrastructure to produce content at that level.

We solve that by giving them instant access to automated production, analytics, and monetization. Our partnership with SportsEngine is a good example. It puts professional-grade coverage into the hands of thousands of clubs. Over time, I see youth sports becoming more organized, data-driven, and monetized, and Pixellot will be the infrastructure that makes that possible.

Pixellot now operates across dozens of countries. In terms of the U.S. market, how much are you seeing international sports penetrate, and which do you see gaining traction next?

The rise of Padel shows how quickly a sport can break through when video fuels discovery: it exploded on TikTok. Social media accelerates everything, especially among younger audiences. Soccer is anoth

LINK:	https://www.sportsvideo.org/2025/09/19/svg-sit-down-pixellots-rob-desl...
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