Innovating Cricket: An Interview with Gagan Daga, Co-founder & CEO of Str8bat

An exclusive interview with Mr. Gagan Daga, Co-founder & CEO of str8bat, a Bengaluru-based sports technology company

In an engaging interview with Mr. Gagan Daga, Co-founder and CEO of Str8bat, a pioneering sports technology company based in Bengaluru, we delved into the innovative solutions transforming the world of cricket.

His vision for integrating technology into sports promises to enhance player performance and revolutionize the way fans experience the game.

Can you share your journey and what inspired you to co-found str8bat?

Gagan Daga: The idea for str8bat was born from a simple but powerful aspiration: to democratise sports technology in India. We noticed that a player’s passion for the game often deepens when it’s fuelled by measurable progress and insights.

Players return to the field not just for the love of the sport, but to understand how well they’re performing, how much they’ve improved, and where they can grow. Real-time data offers those answers, building both confidence and competence.

What truly drove us was the belief that while talent may be universal, access to quality coaching and actionable insights is not.

With str8bat, we set out to bridge that gap, making high-performance analytics accessible to every athlete, irrespective of location, level and age – empowering them to improve through meaningful technology.

Can you explain how the patented camera-less bat sensor works and what makes it unique compared to other sports technology?

Gagan Daga: The str8bat sensor is a compact, camera-less device that captures real-time, 360-degree data on the bat’s motion, everything from bat speed and bat lift angle to impact speed and even a patented sweet spot index.

This data is translated into visual insights that are instantly accessible on a mobile device. Net-net we capture motion w/o cameras. This entire tech platform is patented across countries like US, Europe, India, Australia and many more

To achieve this we have solved 26 problems, 16 of them belong to areas of motion physics, signal processing, data science and material science. It’s a deep-tech product in sports with cricket as the first use-case.

We now offer two hardware variants: the black sensor and the new sticker sensor. While the features, metrics, and app experience remain identical across both, they offer different value propositions to our players.

The black device offers flexibility for them to share across bats and players and the sticker sensor offers a seamless, integrated design. It sticks to the bat just like any other sticker; there’s nothing additional to mount or remove.

All a player needs to do is charge it before a session, calibrate it(takes 3-4 seconds), and they’re ready to go.

We have recently launched our innovation technology called Elev8 by str8bat—a sports sensor system enhanced by AI to deliver real-time performance feedback.

It tracks key metrics, such as bat speed, impact speed, timing index, and sweet spot percentage. Then it utilizes elite-level player data and biomechanics to deliver personalized recommendations for improvement, and gives personalised insights.

With Elev8, we’re not just providing data—we’re helping players evolve their game intelligently.

Who is your target audience, and how do you plan to reach and engage with them?

Gagan Daga: Anyone who plays the game. including young sportsmen, coaches, academies, and grassroots programs, corporate players, amateurs and parents who want to provide high-performance tools to their children.

We have a strategic partnership with one of the biggest cricket brands in the world – SG. We have integrated our technology as part of the factory process and have introduced, along with the world’s first smart willow.

We engage this audience through strategic partnerships with sports academies, digital outreach via social media, and offline activations.

We are also the official skilling partners for the Rajasthan Royals, which enabled us to share the success stories which we have created in player development and scouting with them for the last 5 years with the world.

Our direct-to-consumer model is supported by an easy onboarding experience, enabling users to adopt the product and derive value from day one.

How do you differentiate str8bat from other sports technology companies in the market?

Gagan Daga: str8bat is unique in itself and stands out through its simplicity, precision, and accessibility. Traditional systems often rely on complex video analysis or expensive hardware.

In contrast, str8bat delivers high-quality, real-time feedback using just a single sensor, without cameras, external infrastructure, or technical barriers.

We focus on insights, not just data. Players don’t need to interpret complex numbers themselves. The app transforms sensor data into visual feedback, 3D renders and actionable recommendations, making it easy for both players and coaches to take meaningful steps forward.

With Elev8, which is str8bat’s proprietary AI engine, we tailor feedback based on a player’s technique and movement patterns, benchmarked against elite performance data.

Whether you’re using the smart sensor or the sleek sticker variant, you’re tapping into the same intelligent ecosystem.

We actually welcome more players coming to the exciting space of sports tech. Its a green field with many pain point, big market and huge opportunities.

Are there any upcoming features or products that you are particularly excited about?

Gagan Daga: Yes, recently we have introduced Elev8 and our team has been continuously working to introduce new technology for upcoming players.

We are integrating AI-driven coaching insights, which will allow the platform to not only show performance data but also suggest specific areas of improvement based on a player’s patterns.

We are also enhancing the hardware further to make it lighter and more robust, and exploring use cases in other sports such as tennis and baseball.

Additionally, we’re developing team analytics solutions, which will offer a broader performance view across multiple players and sessions, opening new avenues for coaches and academies.

What message would you like to convey to young cricketers who aspire to improve their game using technology?

Gagan Daga: My message to aspiring cricketers is: Train smarter, not just harder. Talent is great but you need the right feedback at the right time. Technology like str8bat gives you the ability to understand your game on a deeper level.

Embrace it and take your game higher; it’s about enhancing your training with precise insights that help you progress faster. If you’re serious about improving, data is your ally.

Is there anything else you would like to share about str8bat or your vision for the future of sports?

Gagan Daga: While we started with cricket, a sport we’re deeply passionate about and it also happens to be the second-largest participating sport in the world.

More importantly, cricket is played 360 degrees, which forced us to build a solution that captures motion from any angle, without cameras. That’s what gave us our unfair advantage. 

Now, with that core tech, we’re moving into other sports like golf, tennis, and baseball. str8bat isn’t just a product; it’s a motion capture platform that others can build on.

Unlocking precision insights across the entire sports ecosystem. It’s the foundation for the future of motion intelligence in sports

Mr. Gagan Daga’s insights highlight the potential of sports technology to reshape the future of cricket. As Str8bat continues to push boundaries, his commitment to innovation and excellence inspires a new generation of athletes and enthusiasts, paving the way for a more connected and data-driven sporting experience.

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