Kasparov on AI: When Deep Blue Beat Me (Video)

One of the landmark moments in the history of AI came 21 years ago, when Chess Grandmaster Garry Kasparov beat IBM supercomputer Deep Blue — and then was beaten by it.

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Scott Zoldi by Scott Zoldi

Chief Analytics Officer

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One of the landmark moments in the history of AI came 21 years ago, when Chess Grandmaster Garry Kasparov beat IBM supercomputer Deep Blue — and then was beaten by it.

How did this change the future of artificial intelligence? Did it spell the end of the human race as thinkers and competitors?

As a researcher and practitioner in machine learning, I know that each achievement machine learning makes impresses us and sometimes threatens our human intelligence. However, after building thousands of these models with various machine learning algorithms, I also know is that machine learning is not magic or that intelligent, but very good at very specialized problems. When he faced Deep Blue, Garry was competing with a very specialized brute force machine learning effort - one he wouldn't even say was particularly intelligent. However, it was very, very fast!

When I sat down with him at FICO World 2018 to discuss the hot topics in the world of AI, he told me that his defeat that day was a victory for us humans.

Find out why in the video below, and for more of my conversation with Garry Kasparov on AI go to www.fico.com/ai-analytics, where you can see other excerpts as well as our full discussion.

Read my own thoughts on AI and related analytic topics on Twitter @ScottZoldi.

Scott Zoldi
Scott Zoldi
Dr. Scott Zoldi is chief analytics officer at FICO, responsible for artificial intelligence (AI) and analytic innovation across FICO's product and technology solutions. Dr. Scott Zoldi has been listed as an inventor on 100+ patents, in collaboration with other data and analytic scientists, and he is also named on an additional 45+ patent applications in process. Scott is an industry leader in the responsible use of AI, Generative AI (GenAI), and Agentic AI, as well as an outspoken proponent of AI governance and regulation. His groundbreaking work in focused language models (FLMs) for GenAI and a patented use of blockchain technology for AI model development governance has helped propel Scott to AI visionary status. His recent awards include Constellation Research Award AI150, Tech Leadership Award from Banking Tech Awards, Tech Influencer Highly Commendable Award from DataIQ Data & AI Awards, San Diego Business Journal - Leaders of Influence in Technology (2025); Tech Leadership - Software & Services Provider from Fintech Futures, MachineCon AI100 Award, Innovator Award from American Banker (2024); Global Finance Innovator Award (FICO) (2023); and Corinium Future Thinking Award (2022). An enthusiastic member of the southern California tech community, Scott serves on the Boards of Directors of Software San Diego and the San Diego Cyber Center of Excellence. He received his Ph.D. degree in theoretical and computational physics from Duke University, and his work has been published in The Harvard Business Review and numerous scientific journals.

When not at his office or on a plane, Scott can often be found in his Ford Bronco, exploring the desert around San Diego with his family. To hear more of his views follow Scott on LinkedIn and BlueSky @ScottZoldi.
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