PUMA India launches AI-Powered 'PUMA DIVE' campaign with Virat Kohli for sporting season

Top entries will have the chance to play a real life cricket match against PUMA brand ambassador Virat Kohli or win his special boots.

Sports brand PUMA India has launched a unique AI-led campaign called PUMA DIVE this season. Virat Kohli, ace cricketer and PUMA ambassador, took to his social media to announce the PUMA Dive campaign along with an image of him diving and asking fans to rate it.

Virat’s fans in the past have often compared his iconic dives on pitch to PUMA’s leaping cat logo, creating content that has gone viral several times. This season, PUMA has taken the fans’ love for spotting the cat and created a platform to reward them for every image of a dive that they upload on X (formerly Twitter).

Think this definitely is a 💯% score. What do you guys think? 🤔 #PUMADive #ad https://t.co/EpbKKEQ5uu pic.twitter.com/kbexIug4Pz

— Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) September 29, 2023

Under the two-month long campaign, participants will be invited to upload images of best dives in everyday life – be it swimming, sky diving, artistes at concerts, to even self-participation at PUMA’s offline events at malls and stores this season with hashtag PUMADive. With #PUMADive, the brand promises that once you see the dive, you can’t unsee it!

What makes PUMA DIVE unique is the integration of generative AI, which will assess the accuracy of each dive in relation to the PUMA’s iconic leaping cat logo, in under a minute. The closer a participant’s image of a dive matches the PUMA logo, the greater the reward they receive.

Top entries in the season will have the chance to play a real life cricket match against PUMA brand ambassador Virat Kohli or win his special boots. Every participant is guaranteed a reward.

“Fans are the heart and soul of the sporting culture of our country. As a brand, PUMA wants to give these fans a fun way to engage to celebrate iconic moments. Our #PUMADive campaign is a reflection of PUMA’s unique approach at capturing a collective emotion and creating innovative ways for people to own and express it. This campaign is an immersive mix of fun and AI-led technology with once-in-a-lifetime rewards such as playing a game with our star ambassador Virat Kohli, building an all-round fan experience,” said Karthik Balagopalan, managing director, PUMA India.

Conceptualised by Leo Burnett India exclusively for PUMA, the campaign is expected to see enthusiasts from around the world taking part in this unique engagement.

“When it is about owning the sporting season, we at Leo Burnett spotted a simple observation. Be it a diving catch at mid-wicket, or a goal-keeper saving a top corner penalty; all dives in sport and in life resemble the PUMA logo. We leaned on AI technology to open the PUMA Dive campaign for fans, offering them dive scores for each dive they capture and share, gamifying the two-screen experience entirely. Our big plan is to make “PUMA Dive” a universal phrase because ‘once you see it, you can’t unsee it’, “ said Sachin Kamble, national creative director, Leo Burnett India.