What are Poker Bots?
Good old Wikipedia defines a poker bots as ‘computer programs designed to play the game of poker against human opponents or other computer opponents’. Bots are basically computer programs that reads the available information and then applies its programmed logic to select the best course of action. They are commonly associated with poker cheats but these bots, or computer programs, are also used by online poker rooms as artificial and legitimate (albeit controversial) opponents for human poker players. They were originally developed for chess.
So does this type of assistance constitute an unfair advantage? Unsurprisingly, opinions vary widely amongst the online poker community. Some players say they shouldn’t be allowed under any circumstances while others say only on clearly defined tables so that all players are aware that they are being used and can make the choose whether to participate or not.
How worried should you be about poker bots? Despite the fact that most poker rooms forbid the use of bots, they are definitely being used. Opinion differ as to how successful and how much money bots are making their masters. As I understand, no programmer has yet succeeded in building a truly sophisticated bot.