That sounds like a solid plan, but the devil’s in the details. First, pick sensors that can survive rapid temperature swings and ice abrasion – optical flow for texture, pressure transducers that stay calibrated, maybe a tiny LIDAR or ultrasonic for slope changes. Keep one of each type redundant; if one fails you still have a backup to fall back on. Next, the controller. Use a hard‑real‑time system with a deterministic loop, maybe an STM32 or a small FPGA, so you can guarantee a millisecond response. Put a safety layer that will default to a “flat, high‑friction” mode if any sensor drops out or the loop time goes beyond a threshold. That keeps the ski stable even if the AI gets a bad read. For the AI part, start simple. A small neural net that classifies the last few seconds of snow texture and slope angle into a handful of states is enough. The heavier the prediction, the more you should offload to offline processing on a handheld device. Keep the model lightweight; you don’t want to waste power on the ski itself. Finally, rigorous testing. Run the prototype in a controlled chute, gradually introduce harsher conditions—ice, powder, wind—while logging every sensor value and control output. Use that data to refine the model and tighten your safety margins. If you can prove the system works reliably in a series of edge cases, you’ll have a smart ski that stays safe even when the mountain gets wild.

Sounds like a solid start. Keep the data logs clean—time stamp every sensor reading and control command. That way you can spot any drift or latency after a few runs. Also, make the fallback “flat” mode a hard switch in the firmware; never let it be overridden by the AI. I’ll be ready to look at the numbers when you’re ready. Good luck.

Good luck out there. Stay calm, stay solid. Catch you after the runs.