GIB vs Ben vs Humans: Latest Robot Performance Stats
At BBO, we periodically run simulations to see how different types of robots perform in games originally played by humans. By replaying these games with robots, we can evaluate their performance relative to the human field and to each other. The robots competing in these simulations are Basic GIB, Advanced GIB, BBO's Ben AI and the latest candidate for a Ben upgrade, which we fondly call "Big Ben".
We plan to provide regular updates on these simulations, either monthly or once every few months, as well as after major robot upgrades. Below are the latest results from our November simulations.
November Highlights: Robot Performance at a Glance
- Advanced GIB consistently outperformed the human players, achieving the highest average matchpoint scores in nearly every game format. Its strengths are particularly evident in the Just Declare formats, where the focus is on declarer play.
- BBO Big Ben showed spectacular progress, frequently coming close to Advanced GIB's scores and even surpassing it in specific games. Its outstanding performance in the Zenith Daylong Reward — one of BBO's most popular and competitive formats — highlights significant improvements measured against a field of notably strong and competitive players.
- Basic GIB continues to hold its own as a reliable and solid bridge partner, delivering above-average performance across most simulations. It remains a partner which performs better than the average human player on BBO, across all game formats, including in the elite Stars & Platinum 3-Day Tournament.
- BBO Ben excelled in free massive games, like the Free BBO Super Sunday Daylong, where it remained competitive with Advanced GIB and Big Ben.
Free BBO Super Sunday Daylong
Game Description: 12 boards, Matchpoints. 17,549 players
| Robot | Result (MP %) | Boards Played | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Advanced GIB | 61.57 | 2,400 | 2,129 (of 17,549) |
| BBO Big Ben | 60.26 | 2,400 | 2,683 (of 17,549) |
| Basic GIB | 57.69 | 2,400 | 4,023 (of 17,549) |
| BBO Ben | 56.49 | 2,400 | 4,762 (of 17,549) |
Premium BBO Daylong MP 1
Game Description: 8 boards, Matchpoints. 686 players
| Robot | Result (MP %) | Boards Played | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Advanced GIB | 59.22 | 320 | 141 (of 686) |
| BBO Big Ben | 58.24 | 320 | 163 (of 686) |
| BBO Ben | 56.08 | 320 | 211 (of 686) |
| Basic GIB | 55.37 | 320 | 232 (of 686) |
Premium BBO Just Declare 1
Game Description: 8 boards, Matchpoints, Just Declare. 633 players
| Robot | Result (MP %) | Boards Played | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Advanced GIB | 60.80 | 320 | 86 (of 633) |
| BBO Big Ben | 59.07 | 320 | 134 (of 633) |
| Basic GIB | 59.03 | 320 | 135 (of 633) |
| BBO Ben | 56.58 | 320 | 189 (of 633) |
ACBL Daylong MP 1
Game Description: 12 boards, Matchpoints. 1,130 players
| Robot | Result (MP %) | Boards Played | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| BBO Big Ben | 60.46 | 240 | 184 (of 1,130) |
| Advanced GIB | 59.03 | 240 | 232 (of 1,130) |
| Basic GIB | 58.13 | 240 | 262 (of 1,130) |
| BBO Ben | 56.81 | 240 | 306 (of 1,130) |
Zenith Daylong Reward
Game Description: 16 boards, Matchpoints. 1,783 players
| Robot | Result (MP %) | Boards Played | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| BBO Big Ben | 55.83 | 1,920 | 407 (of 1,783) |
| Advanced GIB | 54.22 | 1,920 | 541 (of 1,783) |
| Basic GIB | 51.13 | 1,920 | 844 (of 1,783) |
| BBO Ben | 51.00 | 1,920 | 852 (of 1,783) |
Stars & Platinum 3-Day Tournament
Game Description: 16 boards per day, Matchpoints, Just Declare. 779 players
Session 1 Results
| Robot | Result (MP %) | Boards Played | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Advanced GIB | 57.12 | 320 | 115 (of 779) |
| Basic GIB | 53.63 | 320 | 236 (of 779) |
| BBO Big Ben | 51.62 | 320 | 333 (of 779) |
| BBO Ben | 49.42 | 320 | 438 (of 779) |
Session 2 Results
| Robot | Result (MP %) | Boards Played | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Advanced GIB | 56.74 | 320 | 105 (of 678) |
| Basic GIB | 54.92 | 320 | 162 (of 678) |
| BBO Big Ben | 52.70 | 320 | 254 (of 678) |
| BBO Ben | 51.10 | 320 | 317 (of 678) |
Session 3 Results
| Robot | Result (MP %) | Boards Played | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Advanced GIB | 55.87 | 320 | 122 (of 644) |
| Basic GIB | 55.64 | 320 | 125 (of 644) |
| BBO Big Ben | 55.47 | 320 | 132 (of 644) |
| BBO Ben | 49.47 | 320 | 366 (of 644) |
Overall Results
| Robot | Result (MP %) | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Advanced GIB | 56.58 | 57 (of 644) |
| Basic GIB | 54.73 | 114 (of 644) |
| BBO Big Ben | 53.26 | 165 (of 644) |
| BBO Ben | 50.00 | 313 (of 644) |
About the Robots
GIB is the classic BBO bridge robot, first integrated into BBO in July 2005. GIB, which stands for Ginsberg's Intelligent Bridgeplayer, was created by Matt Ginsberg. Over the years, BBO has maintained and refined GIB to ensure reliable and consistent play.
- Basic GIB is the most used bridge robot on BBO - you can try it in all our free robot games and as a substitute when a player leaves mid-hand; it's called BasicGIB 2/1 - you might already recognize the name.
- Advanced GIB uses simulations during close decisions, in addition to the programmed rules, and analyzes multiple possible outcomes to choose the best course of action. If you see AdvGIB 2/1 on BBO, it's the advanced GIB robot - you'll have it as your partner and opponent in almost all premium games, as well as when you register with a robot partner in pair games.
- While both versions of GIB use the same bidding system, the difference lies in how much they "think" before acting. You can read more about GIB here.
Ben (short for Bridge ENgine) is a machine learning-based robot developed by Lorand Dali, who is now part of the BBO team. BBO's version of the Ben AI was trained on hundreds of millions of deals played by humans on BBO. You can play with Ben at any time by visiting Robot World, and then "Try our AI Bridge Engine".
Big Ben is an enhanced version of Ben, for even better decision-making. 'Big Ben' will soon be introduced as an upgrade to the Ben AI. You can read more about Ben and its variations here.
For feedback, comments, or bug reports, please don’t hesitate to contact us at support@bridgebase.com or share your thoughts in the BBO Forums. You can also find a pinned thread in the forums featuring the latest BBO robot statistics.