An interview with Dave Smith, founder of DS Performance.
Blending AI, 3D avatars and immersive training environments, DS Performance is reimagining what it means to have a personal coach through digital innovation.
With support from Create Growth N2 (CGN2), former GB athlete Dave Smith is turning years of research and experience in the sporting industry into a scalable, future-ready coaching solution for athletes around the world.
Tell us a little about DS Performance.
We provide strength and conditioning support to athletes. We currently have performance strategies for 20 of the world’s most popular sports, which we’re now digitising into an app. This pivot is innovation-led – using emerging technologies to transform how athletes access expert coaching, with three major innovations:
- Providing immersive environments. We’ve created immersive environments to increase athlete understanding and education.
- Introducing AI. The AI model provides personalised coaching points and feedback based on their form and technique.
- Creating digital shadows. This is the next generation of athlete video qualitative analysis, increasing the athletes own understanding of their movement patterns.
Essentially, we’re delivering all the benefits of a one-to-one coach digitally, so athletes can access high-level support anytime, anywhere, and for a fraction of the cost.
What inspired you to start your business?
I didn’t receive any strength and conditioning support until I was in my early 20s. Nine years later, I was competing internationally for Great Britain, but I often wondered how much further I could have gone if I’d had access earlier.
That’s the inspiration behind DS Performance – to give athletes the support they need from the start, so they can reach their full potential faster.
Before this, I started my face-to-face coaching business which I’d set up through The Prince’s Trust. One of their mentors once said: “You need to find a way of making money while you sleep.” That really stuck with me. With coaching, there are only so many hours in a day, and you can only help so many clients at once. Then COVID-19 hit, and lockdown restrictions effectively shut down that side of my business overnight.
During that time, I took a step back and re-evaluated things. I had already started writing a series of strength and conditioning training books before the pandemic, which I self-published. I also added a shop on my website filled with resources to support athletes, but I wanted to find a way to give more personalised support remotely. That’s when I started to explore immersive technology further.
Over the next year, we focused on research and development, collaborated with two universities, secured Innovate UK funding and UK Research and Innovation’s Simpler and Better Funding innovation vouchers, and ultimately built a minimum viable product of my app, which we’re about to take to market.
How did you first get involved with the CGN2 programme?
We were working with University of Nottingham’s Virtual and Immersive Production Studio, using their Vicon system for motion capture to create avatars for the app – like the tech used in video game development. After that collaboration, they introduced me to the CGN2 programme to further support my journey.
How has CGN2 supported your business?
What I found great about CGN2 is how broad and flexible and tailored the support is. Personally, CGN2 helped us to push our immersive environments forward, refine our investor-facing materials – like pitch deck videos – and grow through business development opportunities. This March, I was even invited by CGN2 to attend the Big Creative UK Summit in London to network with other innovators and pitch my business to investors.
They’ve also supported our beta testing and pilot launch by connecting us with student unions and sports organisations, giving us the opportunity to put our tech to the test in real-life environments and gather valuable user data.
What’s next for DS Performance?
Right now, we’re focused on launching our pilot to generate traction and user feedback. This will help us demonstrate its potential to investors while we perfect our product.
After that, we plan to launch a full version for one sport following a few months of development, once we’ve secured the investment we need. We’re also working on a ‘Strength Pro’ programme that isn’t tied to a specific sport – which is ideal for anyone training at a gym or from home who would like instant, specialist support at their fingertips.
What advice would you give to other business owners?
Make the most of every resource and opportunity available to you – you really get out what you put in. Programmes like this will support your vision and help you find growth opportunities and connections in your industry, so you can take your business to the next level.
CGN2 offers fully funded business support to help creative, digital, and creative technology businesses in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire thrive. See if you’re eligible for our free business support programmes and apply today!
