Poker Computer Program To Take on The Professionals in Canada

Phil 'The Unabomber' Laak has been involved with a computer versus human match-up before, in 2005, when Laak defeated a poker robot, 'Poker Probot', at the World Series of Poker. Now it appears that Laak will again be involved in a match up against a computer.

Researchers from The University of Alberta, Canada, in particular, Dr. Jonathan Schaeffer. a professor at the University, has challenged professional card players Ali Eslami and Phil Laak to four sessions of poker with 500 hands in each session.

The challenge would take place at the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence Conference in Vancouver on July 23rd and 24th.

The way the challenge would be set up is each player would be in separate rooms playing against the computer for 500 hands of poker, then at the end of the 500 hands, the two players chip totals would be added together, as will the two computer chip totals, whoever has more chips, wins. The catch is that the cards dealt to Polaris(the computer program) in one room, will be the same cards dealt to the live player in the other.

Although computers have played against humans before in other games such as backgammon and chess, poker presents a different problem for the computers because of the element of bluffing. This is a fact that Schaeffer believes his program can overcome, "There is a mathematically optimal rate at which you should bluff. Computers can calculate that. If humans bluff too much, you can exploit them and win money."

It has been reported that $50,000 has been put up for the competition to lure the professional players.

June 14, 2007
Posted By Susan Torres
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com    Previous Page | Internet Gambling | Top Online Casinos | Submit News!