Are Crossword Solvers About to Go the Way of Chess Players?

Nearly 1,300 people spent this past weekend racing to fill little boxes inside larger boxes, ever mindful of spelling, trivia, wordplay, and a ticking clock. They were competitors--newcomers, ardent hobbyists, and elite speed solvers--in the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, the pastime's most prestigious competition. And most of them got creamed by some software. The annual event, normally set in a packed hotel ballroom with solvers separated by yellow dividers, was virtual this year, pencils swapped for keyboards. After millions of little boxes had been filled, a computer program topped the leaderboard for the first time.