Imagine watching your favorite sports team not from a fixed camera angle, but from anywhere in the stadium—following the star player like you’re in the game itself. This is the revolutionary promise of volumetric video, and a Canadian startup called Peripheral Labs is making it affordable for the masses using technology borrowed from self-driving cars. As traditional sports viewing declines among younger audiences, this immersive technology could be the game-changer that brings fans back into the action.
What is Volumetric Video and Why Does Sports Need It?
Multiple reports confirm that live sports viewing has declined for certain sports, particularly among Gen Z audiences. Leagues and broadcasters are scrambling to create more engaging experiences, and volumetric video generation represents a breakthrough solution. This technology uses numerous cameras to capture footage in 3D, allowing users to view plays from various angles—creating an inside-the-video-game experience that traditional broadcasting cannot match.
The Self-Driving Car Connection: How Peripheral Labs Cracks the Cost Code
Peripheral Labs was founded in 2024 by Kelvin Cui and Mustafa Khan, both veterans of the University of Toronto’s driverless car team with impressive credentials. Khan has researched at Huawei, while Cui worked on chassis systems as a software engineer at Tesla. Their automotive background proved crucial to their sports technology breakthrough.
“Both Mustafa and I are huge sports fans. He has been a massive Arsenal fan, and I grew up watching the Vancouver Canucks since I was seven. When Mustafa showed me his research about 3D reconstruction, my brain said it would be cool to watch hockey like this [in a free-flowing, multi-angle way]. This is how we started on Peripheral Labs,” Cui explained.
The founders are applying robotics perception and 3D vision concepts from self-driving cars to sports broadcasting. Their system dramatically reduces camera requirements from over 100 to as few as 32, significantly decreasing costs and operational overhead. This makes the technology accessible to more teams and broadcasters.
Transforming Fan Engagement Through Immersive Viewing
The platform enables unprecedented control over viewing experiences. Fans can:
- Track individual players throughout the game
- Freeze critical moments to examine from multiple angles
- Choose unique vantage points unavailable in traditional broadcasts
- Access biomechanical data about player movements and flexibility
“While we work with off-the-shelf cameras, the way we package it with our experience in robotics and ML is what gives us an edge both in terms of platforms and also scaling from small practice enclosures to big soccer and football stadiums,” Cui noted.
The Technical Edge: From Joint Tracking to Stadium Scaling
Peripheral Labs’ software platform can observe different joints, including finger movements, to measure flexion. In soccer demonstrations, the system tracks knee and ankle flexion, providing coaches with valuable data about body positioning and player flexibility. This dual-purpose technology serves both entertainment and analytical needs.
The company’s sensor stack resembles those used in self-driving cars, capturing scenes with depth perception that enables photorealistic 3D reconstruction. This approach allows them to maintain minimal hardware costs while delivering premium results.
Investor Confidence and Market Position
Peripheral Labs has raised a $3.6 million seed round led by Khosla Ventures, with participation from Daybreak Capital, Entrepreneurs First, and Transpose Platform. Joe Ros, a partner at Entrepreneur First, highlighted the founders’ impressive background and the technology’s potential.
“Their ultimate viewer is the consumer, and their demand for sports content is evergreen, not cyclical. With Peripheral, the new standard for that consumption will be immersive, volumetric video. And the work they’re doing now in sports will give them the data, tech, and deployment moat to be the only person in the market able to enable this,” Ros told Bitcoin World.
The startup competes with companies like Arcturus Studios in the volumetric capture space but believes their automotive technology background gives them unique advantages in scaling and cost reduction.
Future Roadmap and Industry Impact
With 10 engineers currently on staff, Peripheral Labs plans to expand its team with a focus on platform and hardware development. Key goals include reducing system latency, increasing 3D reconstruction resolution, and further decreasing costs. The company is in conversations with several teams and leagues in North America, though no public partnerships have been announced yet.
The technology represents more than just better viewing—it could fundamentally change how sports are analyzed, coached, and experienced. As traditional broadcasting struggles to maintain younger audiences, immersive technologies like volumetric video offer a path forward that aligns with how digital-native generations consume content.
FAQs: Understanding Peripheral Labs’ Technology
What is volumetric video?
Volumetric video creates three-dimensional recordings that allow viewers to change perspectives and move within the captured space, unlike traditional 2D video.
How does Peripheral Labs reduce costs compared to competitors?
By applying self-driving car sensor technology and AI models, they’ve reduced camera requirements from over 100 to as few as 32 cameras while maintaining quality.
Who are the founders and what’s their background?
Kelvin Cui (former Tesla software engineer) and Mustafa Khan (former Huawei researcher) both worked on the University of Toronto’s award-winning driverless car team before founding Peripheral Labs.
Which investors are backing Peripheral Labs?
The $3.6 million seed round was led by Khosla Ventures with participation from Daybreak Capital, Entrepreneurs First, and Transpose Platform.
What sports will benefit first from this technology?
While the company hasn’t announced specific partners, their technology scales from practice facilities to large stadiums, making it suitable for soccer, football, hockey, and other major sports.
Conclusion: The Future of Sports Viewing is Volumetric
Peripheral Labs represents a convergence of automotive technology and sports entertainment that could redefine how we experience live events. By making volumetric video affordable and scalable, they’re not just creating a new viewing option—they’re building the infrastructure for the next generation of sports engagement. As broadcasters and leagues seek solutions to declining viewership, this immersive technology offers a compelling answer that could bring fans closer to the action than ever before.
To learn more about the latest AI and technology trends transforming entertainment, explore our article on key developments shaping immersive media and viewer engagement technologies.
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