technology
Red Bull uses AI to help its Formula One team weigh race decisions
The team’s strategy agent interprets regulations and recommends actions, while engineers and strategists remain involved.
By NewsCubby Editorial Desk · Published
Red Bull Racing is using an artificial-intelligence strategy tool to help staff assess choices during Formula One races, according to CNBC’s October 12 interview with the team’s technical and performance partnerships chief, Jack Harington.
The tool began by helping engineers search regulations and earlier rulings. Harington told CNBC that it now recommends actions using a broader set of information. He described an example from the 2025 Italian Grand Prix: after Max Verstappen cut a corner defending his position, the system advised returning the place to reduce the risk of a penalty.
That example is the executive’s account of a past race. It does not prove AI can predict every outcome or establish that technology alone wins a Grand Prix. Harington said people remain part of the decisions and described AI as a way to support engineers and strategists.
The practical development is a shift from searching information to offering recommendations under race pressure. Human judgment remains important when regulations, track events and championship considerations interact.
Photo: Max Verstappen’s Red Bull RB20 at the Chinese Grand Prix, April 20, 2024. Liyicheng2004 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. This illustrative file photograph does not depict the current AI system or the 2026 Singapore race. Cropped with an AI-assisted headline layout; the adapted image remains under CC BY-SA 4.0. No endorsement is implied.