In 2025, you don’t have to go far to trip over the massive hype for LLMs and the possibilities of AI. We’ve been in the cautiously optimistic camp, quietly integrating AI tools into our workflows to augment our team members throughout our existing discovery, design, and development processes. Over the past few years, APAX co-founder and staff engineer Justin Raney has been leading the charge in our research on applied AI. Justin led a similar initiative in 2008, as APAX became an early entrant in the world of mobile app development, helping our clients gain an early edge in Apple’s App Store (and even BlackBerry's App World!).
Justin has led the development of the Keeneland Race Day mobile app since it launched in 2013. The Race Day app includes many features to enhance racing fans’ experience while following the races at the track or at home. The app delivers live racing data including runner information, race results and payouts, handicapper notes, and simulated betting. It also allows users to purchase tickets, see scheduling information, and find concessions. Justin was excited for the opportunity to add generative AI insights to the Keeneland app in time for this April’s Spring Meet event. From Keeneland’s press release:
Keeneland announces the launch of Artificial Intelligence technology within the Keeneland Race Day App, making it the first race track to offer AI-driven insights to enhance the fan experience. This cutting-edge innovation will provide racing enthusiasts with real-time data on races and runners, predictive analytics, and deeper insights about the Keeneland Spring Meet – all at their fingertips.
These AI features support Keeneland’s mission of making Thoroughbred racing more accessible to a whole new generation of fans, while enhancing the experience even for seasoned handicappers.
Andrew Mills has been the primary developer for the QuickFlips app (formerly known as OneUp) since its launch in March 2024. Through this app, founder Caleb Ashton facilitates the purchase of batches of video games and equipment for resale. Always trying to stay ahead of the curve, Caleb reached out with an idea to incorporate AI into his batch selling process. Knowing that many of his users are large collectors, we built out a feature that allows a user to take a photo of their entire collection and the AI returns the full list of games with their price valuation that can then be added directly to their open sales batch.
Early experimentation has been a key factor to our success at APAX. The world of software development is constantly evolving, and this constant frontier is part of what has attracted our team members to this line of work. Our approach to AI (and web app frameworks, Agile, public cloud, JavaScript libraries…) is to experiment with low stakes and high curiosity. We owe it to our clients to ride each wave to know what’s out there, but we also owe them sure footing when we start to apply new technologies to their business-critical software solutions. We’re excited to see these new AI features in the wild for Keeneland and QuickFlips, adding small but meaningful capabilities that wouldn’t have been feasible without the recent advances in AI.
