An artificial intelligence gamble that paid off

For a fleeting moment, the humans thought they had a chance. Four professional poker players were convinced they found a flaw in the sophisticated artificial intelligence software that was beating them in a tournament of no-limit Texas Hold'em. If they bet in odd sizes, it seemed to trip up the computer. Within a day or two, though, that weakness vanished. "It became very demoralizing showing up every day and losing this hard," said Jason Les, who has played professional poker for a decade. When the 20-day tournament was done, the artificial intelligence, called Libratus, won a princely $1,766,250.