Event sponsor: How did Windsurf AI come to the Aloha Classic? Three questions for Simeon Glasson
Tobias Frauen
· 19.10.2025
Windsurf AI is a US tech company that develops AI tools for programmers and was acquired by AI pioneer OpenAI a few months ago. The company only changed its name from "Codeium" to "Windsurf" in April 2025 after the AI editor launched in November 2024 was a complete success under this name. Windsurf AI has now become a sponsor of the Aloha Classic. IWT Tour Director Simeon Glasson answered a few questions about the collaboration in the midst of the hustle and bustle of the contest.
How did the co-operation between Aloha Classic and Windsurf AI come about? Who approached whom?
I approached Windsurf AI with what I called “a love letter from the windsurfing world.” Their Head of Partnerships was immediately enthusiastic and set up a call with their senior team. As soon as we got on the call, he said how excited they were to finally connect, because they had already been following our tour closely! What?! I was in shock! It turned out that they had actually named their product, and later their company, Windsurf, inspired by the IWT Wave Tour! They even showed me colour boards using our imagery, logo references, and palette ideas. When we first spoke they were in the process of updating their entire platform “with your colours”!!! It was a surreal and wonderful moment of worlds aligning.
- Click here to go to the Windsurf AI website: windsurf.com
How exactly is Windsurf AI involved? Are there plans to continue or even expand this?
They came on board mid-year with an initial USD $50,000 tour partnership and full access for us to their most powerful AI software building platform, the same system they provide to more than 350 Fortune 500 companies. Their support has already been transformative: $30k went directly into upgrading the live-broadcast quality for the Aloha Classic, $10K supported the prize pool at the Maui Pro Am 4-Star, $10K was used to buy the WWT League Office with the high end computer power we need to fully harness Windsurf’s technology. With Windsurf AI, we’re using that to build the new Unified HUB for Windsurfing. That’s the soon to launch free, global home for the sport that will empower every association, every event organiser, every athlete, every brand, and every fan to get more out of this sport. So yes, we’ve been discussing expanding the partnership in 2026, as the HUB becomes the central platform connecting fans, athletes, events, and content worldwide. For the WWT, Windsurf AI is helping us “focus on the fun stuff!”
We all wondered about some slightly odd pictures of the riders in the livestream. What’s the story behind these?
The broadcast crew have been doing a fantastic job overall, but yes, one part was unintentionally hilarious. They used a generic AI graphics tool to cut out rider portraits from registration night, and it got… creative. Paul van Bellen’s Instagram post summed it up and we found this hilarious. But To be clear, that AI had absolutely nothing to do with our tour partner Windsurf AI.
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