Kambi Says AI Traded Entire 2026 World Cup as Bet Builders Gained Share
Kambi says its AI traded the 2026 World Cup, with more than 100 million Turnkey Sportsbook bets and rising live Bet Builder use.
The supplier reports more than 100 million bets on its Turnkey Sportsbook network and an 18% operator trading margin for the tournament.
Kambi says its proprietary AI system compiled and traded betting markets across all 104 matches of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, its first tournament operated this way. In a September 28 interview with iGaming Business, Oliver Lamb, SVP of Trading at Kambi, said the platform handled the pricing lifecycle from data intake and market creation through liability management and settlement.
The company reported more than 100 million bets on its Turnkey Sportsbook partner network, zero platform downtime and an 18% operator trading margin. The bet total applies to Turnkey Sportsbook and excludes bets placed through Kambi’s separate Odds Feed+ product. Those performance figures were supplied by Kambi; the published interview did not include an independent audit of the overall totals or margin.
Kambi’s July update, issued with two matches still to play, said the tournament was its first with both pre-match and live offers fully compiled and traded by its algorithmic system. The supplier said AI enabled more player-prop markets and more combinations within its Bet Builder product.
Bet Builders accounted for 22% of live bets during the 2026 tournament, up from 3% at the 2022 World Cup, according to figures Kambi gave iGaming Business. The number of live Bet Builder bets was seven times the 2022 level, and player props featured in 65% of Bet Builders, versus 25% four years earlier.
“In simple terms, what we have undertaken is a shift from machine-assisted human trading to human-assisted machine trading.” — Oliver Lamb, SVP of Trading, Kambi
Kambi also reported that its live-bet placement delay fell by more than 40% between August 2025 and July 2026 across Premier League and World Cup betting. That figure is not a World Cup-only comparison. The supplier said human traders remain involved in product development and testing, while the AI system handles established market pricing and risk at scale.
Richard Mulligan
