Meet The Ref, your league's AI commissioner
The Ref is the AI that follows your StreakLeague league and writes about it: a tip each morning, a report on each day, a Weekly Report, and commentary when something big happens.
What is The Ref?
The Ref is StreakLeague's AI commissioner, also called the AI referee: it follows your league's events and writes short commentary on them, which appears in The Ref tab of the app.
The Ref is an AI, not a person. Its lines are generated with Anthropic's Claude on StreakLeague's servers. It posts when something happens in the league, not on every check-in.
When does The Ref post?
The Ref posts a tip each morning, a report after each day closes, a Weekly Report on Sundays, and commentary when something big happens in the league.
| Post | When | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Morning tip | Each morning, around 07:00 in the league creator's time zone | One practical tip for the league's habit. |
| Daily report | After each day closes, for leagues with two or more people | A short report on the day that just ended: who showed up, who's gaining and how the standings moved. |
| Weekly Report | Sundays, after the weekly Knockout cut | The week's moments, such as perfect weeks, late saves, streaks that ended and who was cut. Weeks with nothing to report are skipped. |
| Moments | When they happen | Streak milestones (day 7, 14, 21, 30, 50 and 100), streak breaks, eliminations, league wins and season champions. |
The Ref calls streak milestones, streak breaks, eliminations, league wins and season champions; late-night saves and close calls show up in challenges and in the daily and weekly reports.
What does The Ref sound like?
The Ref writes short, declarative lines in the third person: it opens on the fact, gives a verdict, and after a loss it ends on what comes next, without mocking anyone.
Sample lines in The Ref's style (names are fictional):
- Late-night save
Two minutes to midnight. The league does not ask questions.
- Streak milestone
Thirty days. Maya is one ahead. The chase is the story now.
- Streak break
The streak is over. The season is not. Dev starts again tomorrow.
- League win
Ari takes the season. Not with noise. With a record no one could argue with.
- Morning tip
A new day on the board. The first ten minutes decide most check-ins. Start early.
What does The Ref know about my league?
The Ref works from what happens in your league, such as check-ins, streaks, standings and cuts, along with members' display names.
That information is sent to Anthropic only to generate The Ref's commentary, and the commentary can mention you by display name to the other members of your leagues. The Ref's content rules keep it away from appearance, body, sexuality, race, religion, mental health, family and relationships. The privacy policy has the details.
How often will The Ref notify me?
The Ref's posts appear in The Ref tab, and StreakLeague as a whole sends at most 3 push notifications a day and doesn't send any between 23:00 and 07:00 local time.
You can choose which kinds of notification you get in Profile → Notifications.
Can I change The Ref?
You can change how The Ref looks, not what it says: The Ref's persona setting in Profile swaps its portrait, and its commentary stays the same.
The persona applies to every league you're in.
Is The Ref a real person?
No. The Ref is an AI commissioner; its lines are generated with Anthropic's Claude, not written by a person.
Frequently asked questions
Does The Ref comment on every check-in?
No. The Ref posts when something happens, such as a streak milestone, a cut or a league win. Ordinary check-ins are counted without a comment.
Where do I read The Ref's posts?
In The Ref tab of the StreakLeague app, which shows your league's latest posts.
Does The Ref cost extra?
No. The Ref comes with every league. Joining and competing are free; creating a league needs Pro (after your first).
What does The Ref say when a player is cut?
It names the cut plainly, credits what the player did and looks ahead. How Knockout mode works.