The year of 2024 has flown by so fast! And when we look back, the first thought that comes to mind is gratitude.
Here at Sunbears, we’d like to thank our co-creators, coaches and partners in each country for their tremendous support this year! And, as always, we’d like to thank our unique and talented teammates for their support throughout this past year. Thank you! ありがとう！多謝！
So let’s take a look at our proudest milestones of 2024, shall we?
Nice to meet you, Onogoro!
One of our most exciting projects this year has been beginning the development of our AI Chatbox, Onogoro. Inspired by the mythical Japanese island symbolising unity, Onogoro aims to make communication smoother and more intuitive for our users. Get to know Onogoro here!
Who wants to play beach soccer?!
We’ve been actively collaborating with beach soccer coaches on the development of a dedicated beach soccer version within our app. This addition will complement our existing support for sports, offering tailored features to enhance athlete performance and coaching in the dynamic beach soccer environment. Stay tuned for updates as we bring this vision to life!
A conversation with futsal coach Rafa Merino
We had the privilege of featuring an interview with coach Rafa Merino, a reputable futsal coach and one of Sunbears’ co-creators. He shared insights into his journey and philosophy on fostering growth in sports. Read the interview here.
London Tech Week 2024
We embarked on a discovery journey at London Tech Week this year, where we explored the intersection of technology and sports. This global event highlighted advancements in AI, wearable tech, and data analytics. Discover our experience.
SPORTEC2024
We returned to SPORTEC, Japan’s largest sports industry trade show, to showcase our Injury Assessment Tool alongside our other, most recent innovations. It was a great opportunity to connect with global experts and share our vision for safer, more inclusive sports. Check out our highlights here!
It’s official, we’re a Japan Ice Hockey Federation supporter!
This year, we became proud supporters of the Japan Ice Hockey Federation. Our collaboration emphasises performance, game preparation, injury prevention, and athlete health tracking, as well as supporting sports education for the next generation with our ever-evolving technology. Check out our announcement!
Launching the Injury Assessment tool
We released our Injury Assessment tool, designed to assist coaches, athletes, and medical professionals in evaluating and managing sports injuries effectively. Learn more about this here!
Sports Safety Symposium 2024
We participated in the 11th Sports Safety Symposium, themed — “Sports Safety Action — Learn, Prepare, and Organize” — where we joined global experts to discuss the latest strategies for integrating safety into sports. Explore the event.
Welcome to Phase 7!
The year 2025 will finally see the release of Phase 7 of the development. This will include improvements to mobile usability, a review of account registration and login behavior, and the installation of complementary voice and AI input features. Stay tuned!
Year-end thoughts
We also applied for several competitions and partnerships, such as ISC, BIHUB, and INNOWIDE. While we haven’t been successful in some of them and have yet to receive replies for others, the results provide us with a valuable opportunity to reassess where Sunbears has been, what we have accomplished, and how we can adjust our direction moving forward.
The reactions and feedback from our co-creators not only give us encouragement but also highlight many areas for improvement in our tool. Although this journey may seem endless at times, we must remain patient as we are building a long-lasting tool that can truly help people in need in the long run.
We are genuinely thankful for all the opportunities we’ve had, as well as the feedback we’ve received. We believe that 2025 will be another amazing year for Sunbears as we embrace innovation and progress!
One more big thank you!
As we move into 2025, our commitment to innovation and collaboration remains key. We’re deeply grateful to our partners, collaborators and community for all your support. Let’s keep an eye out for our upcoming news and developments!
And if you’re a reader who would prefer to explore our content written in Japanese, you can find the Japanese version of this article here: 2024年を振り返って, and even more pieces on our note.com blog: Sunbears Official【公式】.
We wish you a healthy and fulfilling 2025! 🐻🐻🐻
