San Antonio basketball isn’t just a game—it’s a way of life. For over 50 years, the San Antonio Spurs have built their legacy around community, integrity, and team-first values.
Now, as competition expands beyond the court, the Spurs use ChatGPT Enterprise to accelerate operational growth and scale their distinctive culture to reach international markets.
“We were looking to create real competitive advantages,” says RC Buford, CEO of Spurs Sports & Entertainment. “Being early adopters of artificial intelligence is one powerful way to do that.”
Today, teams across the Spurs organization—spanning data analytics, community engagement, and partnerships—have rapidly developed their own GPT solutions, boosting employees’ AI fluency from14% to over 85%in months.
## Driving cultural change to meet global fan expectations
Like every professional sports organization, the San Antonio Spurs face rising expectations. Fans want hyper-personalized stadium experiences, and the Spurs also sought ways to connect authentically with fans beyond San Antonio—especially in France, Argentina, and South Korea.
Inside the club, teams look for faster ways to analyze data, create content, and expand leadership programs and community impact, often with less overhead.
The Spurs realized that meeting these goals required more than a new technology mandate; it called for new ways of working together.
“We're very intentional about not chasing shiny objects,” says Charlie Kurian, Director of Business Strategy & Innovation at Spurs Sports & Entertainment. “We start with the goals, not the tools. Then we ask: what’s the most human-centered, efficient way to get there? We didn't want to just push a tool. We wanted to create genuine pull.”
## Building momentum with a people-first rollout
After reviewing several AI vendors, the Spurs chose OpenAI for its cultural fit and the ease with which teams could weave ChatGPT Enterprise into daily workflows.
“People are on all waves of the spectrum in terms of feelings, thought, and usage of LLMs.” Kurian says. “We piloted other tools and adoption was low. But with OpenAI, we don't have to sell the tool.”
Kurian and his team introduced ChatGPT Enterprise in phases, beginning with 150 pilot users. In-person training, custom onboarding guides, and an internal AI hackathon prioritized peer learning and kept the focus on experimentation, not outcomes.
“We knew that if we could make a bet on the most valuable asset that we have, which is our people, and really meet them where they're at, that would pay dividends,” notes Kurian. “When we came to OpenAI, it wasn't just a vendor fit, it was a great cultural fit.”
## Delivering business value with purpose-built GPTs
With a strong foundation in place, teams across the San Antonio Spurs began creating GPTs that solve specific business problems in community outreach, operations, partnerships, and fan engagement. Dozens are already in use:
Each solution was built by employees who saw a clear need and felt increasingly fluent with AI. To continue to accelerate progress, the Spurs recently hosted an AI Challenge Day where more than 150 staff members prototyped their own GPTs.
Fan Voice GPT SS&E Transformative Leadership GPT
## Realizing ROI in months
By prioritizing comfort and fluency rather than usage quotas, the San Antonio Spurs saw rapid returns in months:
Spurs employees say one reason adoption has stuck is because the tool itself, ChatGPT, is genuinely intuitive.
“We get emails from people saying, ‘Hey, how can I get access?’” Kurian says. “The pull and demand is organic.”
## Cultivating a culture of continuous AI learning
San Antonio Spurs leadership treat AI as a lever for learning, alignment, and lasting impact, not a disruption. “I hope to create efficiencies that allow the brilliant minds around me to solve even bigger problems,” says Buford.
That outlook now shapes their roadmap. The upcoming Spurs Performance Institute will feature a research track on AI and coaching, developed with partners such as UTSA and the Air Force to study decision-making and cognitive performance.
Inside the organization they are moving from exploration to enablement: supporting power users, surfacing high-impact GPTs, and hosting internal hackathons to spread new ideas.
“What excites me most is seeing people light up,” Kurian says. “They try something new, it works, and they start imagining what else is possible.”
## An adoption blueprint any organization can follow
The San Antonio Spurs’ adoption model(opens in a new window) comes down to two transferable principles:
“If a tool requires a manual, something’s gone wrong,” says Buford.
Buford has guided the club through decades of change, from pioneering international scouting to player-care programs now standard across the NBA, and his mindset remains the same with AI: experiment with purpose and stay rooted in who you are.
“We’re not just looking to adopt AI because it’s trendy,” adds Kurian. “We’re doing it because it helps us serve our fans and our people better.”
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