CAN UNU’S SWARM AI CONTINUE TO CRUSH VEGAS?

Last week’s NFL divisional playoff round more than made up for a fairly dull wildcard round. UNU couldn’t help but feel a little validated when the late game heroics of Aaron Rodgers, Jared Cook and Mason Crosby made UNU’s prediction of a close Packer win look prophetic. And while a late game penalty on a two-point conversion is an awful way to lose a game, it gave UNU another correct underdog pick when the Steelers bested Kansas City. (We can also assure you that Bill Belichick isn’t in league with UNU, despite having his Patriots kick a meaningless late game field goal to cover a 16 point spread…even if it did validate our prediction.)

If you’ve noticed UNU’s strong run through the first two rounds of the NFL playoffs, you aren’t alone. Recently both ESPN and Forbes have called attention to UNU’s ability to correctly forecast outcomes so far in the 2017 postseason.

It’s tempting to describe what UNU does with metaphors like “crystal balls” or “Ouija boards”, but the reality is so much cooler than anything “magical”. An UNU Swarm is science pure and simple. It is based on the kinds of observed swarm behaviors scientists have noted in nature for centuries. Another cool thing about UNU’s forecasts is that they’re based on taking the individual intelligence and thought processes of smart people getting together as a group, elevating a Swarm Intelligence beyond the sum of its parts.

This week, researchers at Unanimous AI asked UNU to provide insight on the NFL Conference Championship games. Both games offer intriguing matchups. In Atlanta, the game between the Packers and Falcons showcases two teams that saved their best football of the year for the postseason. Meanwhile, in New England a strong Patriots team that looked listless at times last week hosts a Steelers team that hasn’t lost since before Thanksgiving.

Above we’re showing the result from the UNU Swarm group that thus far has gone 8-0 across the first two playoff rounds. There’s strong belief with this group in the Patriots, manifested in a couple of different ways.  This Swarm had high confidence that the Patriots would cover the 6 point spread, with a hypothetical bet to back that up.

To be clear, we’re not recommending that for an actual wager. Instead, it’s a device UNU uses.  The Swarm is asked to choose a hypothetical wager between $0 and 100 to give us an added layer of understanding for the confidence they hold in a prediction. When this Swarm was given that task, they pushed things all the way up that confidence scale.

There’s slightly less assurance in our Swarm for Green Bay here. The Swarm seemed to recognize that both teams are playing great right now, and they’re predicting hard-fought game from both sides. What’s the difference maker here? It could be Mr. Discount Doublecheck himself, Aaron Rodgers. While Matty Ice is having a tremendous year and looked great against the Seahawks in the divisional round of the playoffs, there’s just something about picking against Aaron Rodgers in a game UNU saw as one that could come down to the final moments.

In the end, based on the results of this Swarm (backed up by a second confirming swarm today) UNU believes pretty strongly in the Patriots to not only win, but to cover the 6 point spread in their game at Gillette Stadium Sunday. UNU thinks the game in the Georgia Dome will be very close, but gives a narrower edge and much milder recommendation for the Packers and the points.

Want to keep in touch with the Swarm? Drop us a line below and we’ll keep you in the loop…