Humans narrowly beat computer in poker battle

[mollila]

by Deboran Jones Wed Jul 25, 10:09 AM ET

"Polaris showed scientists that it is possible for a computer to do well at the essentially psychological game of poker"

YouTube - Machine vs man poker challenge...

VANCOUVER (AFP) - Two professional poker players narrowly beat a computer late Tuesday after four tense rounds that scientists called the world's first man-versus-machine poker championship.

Phil Laak and Ali Eslami, two poker players from Los Angeles ranked as the world's best, prevailed against a program named Polaris by just 570 points in the fourth and final game in the match.

Rows of weary-looking computer scientists and a few spectators watched the grueling poker battle in an overheated hotel conference room as it stretched on until 11 pm (0600 GMT) on Tuesday.

When the humans won, the room erupted in cheers.

"I really am happy it's over," said Eslami, 30, adding that playing against the computer was more exhausting than any previous game in his career.

Eslami, a former computer consultant, praised the machine and the computer scientists.

"I'm surprised we won.... it's already so good it will be tough to beat in future" as scientists make further improvements on Polaris' programming.

Much was riding on the tense last minutes of the fourth match because the previous three games over two days resulted in one draw and one win each for humans and the machine.

Scientists had billed the competition as a milestone for computer artificial intelligence, similar to the 1997 match in which a computer named Deep Blue beat Russian genius Garry Kimovich Kasparov at chess.

Darse Billings, a one-time professional poker player and lead architect of the Polaris team at the University of Alberta, said even though the program lost in the end it played "brilliantly."

Polaris showed scientists that it is possible for a computer to do well at the essentially psychological game of poker, he said. "I wouldn't be surprised if we can beat them tomorrow," he said.

The competition was held as 1,000 scientists from around the world converged on this western Canadian city for a conference on artificial intelligence.

"I was expecting a draw," said computer scientist Michael Littman of Rutgers University in the United States.

Littman served as the official arbiter of the game and at the end declared the humans "clear winners."

Poker is a special challenge for computers -- which can already consistently beat humans at chess, checkers and backgammon -- because the gambling game includes deliberate deception, unpredictable emotions of opponents and elements of chance as well as mathematics.

[r8rpwr]

It's really interesting, the ways poker is different than, say, chess, and therefore humans would have an advantage. So much of it is subjective and intangible; no way a computer could pick up on it.

Makes me feel better about how smart I am! LOL.

[t9parabellum]

wow
lol @ r8

[Grand]

Yeah I am totaly agree with you guys.

[ophirsi]

I hope your talking about limit....
its scarey in a way the computers can now beat humens in poker.
makes me think of playing only live in the feature bbecaue I think people will use this to make money and mabe the gambling sites as well.

[IFixlexus]

That is pretty sick to think that somebody could just let a computer play for them online. I guess one sure fire way to be able to hang is to be as good as Phil Laak!

[freiaaron]

prettcool that humans outplay the machine, but makes you wonder about online poker with all the shit that has happened lately

[PapaGary48]

looks like we may not be needed soon, lol

[AnArkhos]

Looks like I need one of those..

Naah.. I'd be happy to play more live if the internet would be infested with those computers. Lucky they cost billions and need a team of scientists to function so we wont be seeing them in games in a while..

[rakmupagain]

I dont think its billions but ok,

Yes very good point, Was this match played in a limit format? I'm sure it had to have been.. I dont think any comp would have a reasonable chance agasint pros in deep stack NL.

[mollila]

Originally Posted by rakmupagain Was this match played in a limit format? I'm sure it had to have been.. I dont think any comp would have a reasonable chance agasint pros in deep stack NL.

Yes it was limit hold'em.

Rules * The game for the event will be two-player Limit Texas Hold'em.

[TheyNeverLearn]

wow thats cool i guess if they can beat computers then so can we maybe lol

[ungarstu132]

do you have any information on HOW this "bot" was programmed, what programming language they used, id be interested to know, because i studied programing.

[liladypokerpro]

I think this is a very interesting article. It sheds a new light on the whole "Poker Bot" theory. I wonder if anyone who uses Bots online has come across this information LOL