Computers have outplayed humans in chess and Go for decades. But poker was long considered unhackable. The game requires not just crunching numbers, but creativity and complex strategy. That only started to change about 10 years ago, when a new generation of unbeatable poker bots began to appear online. 

The makers of the technology remained in the shadows, so Bloomberg’s Kit Chellel set out to find them. On today’s Big Take podcast, he joins David Gura to share the story of how a group of Russian students invented the world’s best online poker bots and what that means for the multi-billion-dollar industry.

Read more: The Russian Bot Army That Conquered Online Poker

Computers have outplayed humans in chess and Go for decades. But poker was long considered unhackable. The game requires not just crunching numbers, but creativity and complex strategy. That only started to change about 10 years ago, when a new generation of unbeatable poker bots began to appear online.  The makers of the technology remained in the shadows, so Bloomberg’s Kit Chellel set out to find them. On today’s Big Take podcast, he joins David Gura to share the story of how a group of Russian students invented the world’s best online poker bots and what that means for the multi-billion-dollar industry.
Read more: <a href="The%20Russian%20Bot%20Army%20That%20Conquered%20Online%20Poker">The Russian Bot Army That Conquered Online Poker</a>

The Big Take from Bloomberg News brings you inside what’s shaping the world's economies with the smartest and most informed business reporters around the world. The context you need on the stories that can move markets. Every afternoon.

The Big Take from Bloomberg News brings you inside what’s shaping the world's economies with the smartest and most informed business reporters around the world. The context you need on the stories that can move markets. Every afternoon.

Big Take

The Genius Minds Behind the World’s Best Poker Bots

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/fb6b7192-2bdd-405a-99bc-b1f10116df2d/transcript

Skyrocketing tuition costs, COVID and fewer high school graduates have been straining the survival of smaller American colleges, leading many to shut down. Now, some are joining a surprising new path: mergers and acquisitions. 

Bloomberg reporter Francesca Maglione sits down with Big Take host David Gura to discuss why some colleges are eager to merge with others, and what this new dynamic might mean for the future of higher education. 

Skyrocketing tuition costs, COVID and fewer high school graduates have been straining the survival of smaller American colleges, leading many to shut down. Now, some are joining a surprising new path: mergers and acquisitions. Bloomberg reporter Francesca Maglione sits down with Big Take host David Gura to discuss why some colleges are eager to merge with others, and what this new dynamic might mean for the future of higher education.

Private Equity, But for Dying Universities

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/29567492-fba9-4569-b253-b1f601205fb3/transcript

Talk of de-dollarization has been gaining momentum among China, India, Brazil, Russia and South Africa in the wake of significant US led sanctions on Russia. Former US President and candidate Donald Trump has said the currency is under attack — and that any country that shuns it would face new tariffs on imports if he is elected.

On today's Big Take Asia Podcast, host K. Oanh Ha talks to Bloomberg’s Saleha Mohsin about the unique role the dollar plays in the world economy — and what, if anything, could replace it.

Read more: The Dollar’s Dominance, Explained

Further listening: Odd Lots Podcast – How the US Dollar Became an International Weapon of War

Talk of de-dollarization has been gaining momentum among China, India, Brazil, Russia and South Africa in the wake of significant US led sanctions on Russia. Former US President and candidate Donald Trump has said the currency is under attack — and that any country that shuns it would face new tariffs on imports if he is elected.
On today's Big Take Asia Podcast, host K. Oanh Ha talks to Bloomberg’s Saleha Mohsin about the unique role the dollar plays in the world economy — and what, if anything, could replace it.
Read more: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/features/usd-strong-dollar-dominance/">The Dollar’s Dominance, Explained </a>Further listening: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-03-18/saleha-mohsin-on-how-the-us-dollar-usd-became-a-weapon-of-war">Odd Lots Podcast – How the US Dollar Became an International Weapon of War</a>

Could the Chinese Yuan Ever Replace the US Dollar?

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/0188fae4-3bf2-4397-a094-b1f501550588/transcript

Fighting has escalated in the Middle East after thousands of pagers and walkie talkies held by Hezbollah operatives exploded across Lebanon last week. That attack is the most recent example of supply chain interference — a global problem that national security officials say is now “rampant.” 

Bloomberg cybersecurity reporter Katrina Manson and defense and intelligence reporter Peter Martin sit down with Big Take host Sarah Holder to break down what we know about how and when the Hezbollah pagers were turned into bombs — and what countries like the US and China are doing to protect their supply chains from foreign infiltration. 

Read more: Exploding Pagers Raise Global Supply-Chain Security Concern

Fighting has escalated in the Middle East after thousands of pagers and walkie talkies held by Hezbollah operatives exploded across Lebanon last week. That attack is the most recent example of supply chain interference — a global problem that national security officials say is now “rampant.” 
Bloomberg cybersecurity reporter Katrina Manson and defense and intelligence reporter Peter Martin sit down with Big Take host Sarah Holder to break down what we know about how and when the Hezbollah pagers were turned into bombs — and what countries like the US and China are doing to protect their supply chains from foreign infiltration. 
Read more: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-09-19/exploding-pagers-sound-global-alarm-for-supply-chain-security?srnd=undefined&amp;sref=ndQeXqOs">Exploding Pagers Raise Global Supply-Chain Security Concern</a>

The Pager Attack Was a Deadly Warning About Supply Chains

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/9c4c8a69-0a04-4ebd-8121-b1f401520632/transcript

The Genius Minds Behind the World’s Best Poker Bots

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