Could AI Eventually be Used to Beat Online Casinos?

Posted by Harry Kane on Wednesday, September 13, 2023

There has been no end of focus on artificial intelligence (AI) in recent times, while we’ve even discussed how this advanced technology will evolve to impact the global iGaming market in the coming years. In short, operators can adopt AI across a broad range of disciplines, from customer service delivery and gameplay development to ensuring player safety online.

However, there’s also scope for AI to be used against operators. In fact, AI has already celebrated numerous victories in the online poker vertical, while there are suggestions that such technology could also be leveraged to beat the house at blackjack over time. But just how far could AI go in this respect, and could it be used to consistently and meaningfully beat the house edge in the future?

Introducing AI and its Previous iGaming Successes

Broadly speaking, AI is a field of informatics and technology that deals with the creation of algorithms. This software has a huge range of applications, as it’s able to leverage machine learning and similar principles to effectively mimic human behaviour and complex processes. These include everything from natural language processing to automated manual tasks, so it’s no surprise that AI has impacted a large number of industries since its inception.

In terms of the global iGaming space, AI integration has largely been restricted to customer service chatbots and personalised marketing for existing players, but this represents just the tip of the iceberg for the technology. In fact, a specially designed AI algorithm recently provided successful real-time advice to human poker players, who were participating in a Texas Hold ‘em variant.

Designed and developed by the AI lab of Facebook and Carnegie Mellon University, the algorithm was stringently tested in two distinct modes. Firstly, it played directly against five human opponents in a competitive tournament. Secondly, five of its iterations were completed by one human player, with both achieving a modicum of success and producing some generally favourable findings.

Overall, the program managed to win an average of $1,000 per hour of play, after initially learning to play against itself and comprehending the optimal tactics for overcoming human opponents. This was achieved despite the algorithm taking just eight days to write, highlighting the ease with which online gamblers could develop AI software to aid them at casinos.

This certainly represents and extension of AI technology, which has previously beaten human opponents in chess and strategy-based computer games such as StarCraft II and DOTA. However, these games are driven by logic and strategic playing field management, whereas poker is primarily a game of instinct and innately human qualities such as bluffing.

Could AI Help You Beat the House at Blackjack?

Of course, this most recent AI development showcases the advancement of the technology, as it appears more than capable of mimicking more advanced and complex human behaviours such as bluffing and tactical understanding.

However, poker is also defined as a game of skill, which requires a small but clear-defined range of attributes to play successfully. Similarly, players also compete directly against one another when competing in poker gameplay, as opposed to taking on a dealer or croupier. Both of these elements can be leveraged by AI to create actionable parameters that work more effectively in practice.

In a similar vein, AI could also be used to produce excellent results when playing blackjack, which fuses elements of skill, chance and strategy in a truly unique way that sets it apart from its contemporaries. More specifically, the most successful players combine numerical ability, optimal strategy and rudimentary card counting statistics to create a mathematical advantage and beat the house, and AI is more than capable of replicating these factors for the benefit of beginners.

Arguably, an AI-powered algorithm for blackjack would arguably be more effective than a poker alternative, as the former relies on a more numerical and quantifiable range of factors. Such software could therefore be leveraged by players to conceive and execute optimal strategies, narrowing the house edge significantly (depending on the precise iteration of blackjack in question).

Can AI Help Online Slot and Roulette Players?

While there’s no doubting the potential of AI to reduce a player’s house edge when enjoying online poker or blackjack, the same cannot necessarily be said of unique games of chance such as slots or roulette. In fact, there’s no tangible usage for AI at all when playing these games, with this largely due to the opportunistic nature of the verticals.

More specifically, the outcomes when playing online slots and roulette are completely randomised and dictated by mechanisms referred to as random number generators (RNGs). Deployed by all reputable and licensed online casinos, RNGs guarantee completely random results and that there’s no discernible patterns in game outcomes, creating a fair playing environment and transparent house edge.

Because of this, algorithms cannot be deployed to identify patterns or accurately predict future results, meaning that they’re ill-equipped to beat the house over any concerted period of time. Sure, algorithms could be built on basic strategy and insights, but these would be unlikely to outperform humans or overcome the opportunistic nature of games of chance.

They certainly couldn’t overcome the mathematical advantage that exists on the casino’s side, notwithstanding random wins or periods of gameplay where you do generate a return on your stake. Ultimately, AI cannot sustain such success over time, and this simple fact is not likely to change no matter how the technology continues to evolve in the future.

The house’s mathematical edge is key when appraising the potential impact of AI in terms of aiding players and beating online casinos. For example, this can only be overcome by strategy and the use of techniques such as card counting, which are themselves rooted in mathematics and statistical insights. So, while AI will provide a boost to poker and blackjack players, the same simply cannot be said for roulette and slots enthusiasts.