44 2026 TSMA The Dual Turning Point: AI as the Core Resilience Mechanism for the Sporting Goods Industry By Ms. Julia Liao Director of AI R&D Department, HuiTong Intelligence Co., Ltd. 1. Global Shifts: From Efficiency to Intelligence Over the past decade, competition in the sporting-goods industry has centered on manufacturing efficiency and brand marketing. Yet within only these two years, the landscape has been entirely transformed. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has moved from laboratory research to a pervasive industrial force which reshapes factories, retail stores, and even sports arenas. From defect detection on production lines and in-store customer-flow analytics to smart anti-theft systems, AI has penetrated every single operational level. On the consumer side, intelligent fitness mirrors and virtual trainers now blur the boundary between product and service, turning sporting goods into parts of larger intelligent experiences. However, this technological wave does not occur in a vacuum. Global economic and policy shifts are equally disruptive. In 2025, the United States announced the so-called “Liberation Day” tariff policy, raising import duties and removing low-value exemptions—forcing a worldwide supply-chain reshuffle (The White House, 2025a; CSIS, 2025). At the same time, investors and consumers are pressing harder for ESG principles: carbon reduction, circular production, and transparency. Companies that fail to demonstrate commitment to sustainability are losing both market credibility and capital access.
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