It’s about time somebody put artificial intelligence (AI) to good use. For once, Google has commandeered everyone’s favourite buzzword for something fun: chess. This isn’t just a regular game across the 64 squares (well, it is); this is GenChess. The rules haven’t changed (Chess 2, when?) – but the pieces sure have.
Rather than sticking with the tried-and-true pieces that have dominated the game for centuries, GenChess concocts entirely new pieces for every game. You’ll help it along by providing a short description of the white piece’s theme (classic or creative) and Google, or more specifically, the Imagen 3 AI model, handles the rest.
Checkmate, incel
As long as your description isn’t just “chess”, you’ll get something fun and unique out of Imagen 3’s other end. Users are solely responsible for describing the white pieces. Google takes it upon itself to dream up suitable pieces you’re looking to beat. Say you want your pieces to be Reddit-themed, Google will hit you with a thematically appropriate opponent – 4Chan – like what happened here.
From there, you’re just playing the game you already know. This isn’t Chess.com, so don’t expect much in the way of fancy features. There’s a choice of three difficulties (easy, medium, and hard) and the option of 5/3 or 10/0 timing settings. You’re locked into this weird, isometric view – to show off the pieces even more – that’s not exactly ideal to play in. Still, it’s fun.
GenChess is just one of the few initiatives deployed this week to celebrate the ongoing 2024 World Chess Championship where Ding Liren hopes to defend his championship against young up-and-comer Gukesh Dommaraju. One of those is “Chatting Chess” which will give watchers of the tournament an AI guide through the game’s intricacies.
“This new segment on the FIDE livestream will use Gemini to demystify the game, offering insightful commentary and fascinating chess trivia. You can also expect to find interesting comparisons and relatable analogies to help understand key moves and strategies,” Google said in the announcement.
Whether we trust a chatbot’s skills in a game like this remains to be seen. ChatGPT, at least, is notoriously bad at describing and playing the game of chess, but maybe Google’s got it down. We’ll have the chance to test its abilities for ourselves come December with Gemini’s Chess Gem, allowing players to play against the AI in text. Players make their moves with proper notation, and Gemini will reply with an updated board to help you along.
Finally, there’s Beyond the Board, a “digital exhibition” of the beautiful game, curated by the one and only Anna Burtasova, a WFM recognised by FIDE. The exhibition will also offer a deep dive into the game’s history and how AI has helped chess reach the highs it enjoys today.
