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

Hungarians handed Prime Minister Viktor Orbán a resounding defeat in Sunday’s parliamentary elections. Peter Magyar and his upstart Tisza won the election by a landslide on the promise of ending years of corruption and the ‘illiberal democracy’ that became synonymous with Orbán’s tenure.

On today’s Big Take podcast, former US Ambassador David Pressman sits down with Sarah Holder to discuss what Orbán’s loss means for Hungary’s economy and political institutions, how a new leader could reshape its relationships with the EU and Russia and why President Trump and the MAGA movement are paying close attention.

Read more: Hungarian Stocks and Forint Jump as Orban Loss Starts New Era

We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.

Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Eleanor Harrison-Dengate and Rachael Lewis-Krisky; Reported by Andras Gergely; Edited by Jeffrey Grocott.

Fact-checking by David Fox and Laura Newcombe; Engineering by Alex Sugiura.

Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

Hungarians handed Prime Minister Viktor Orb&aacute;n a resounding defeat in Sunday&rsquo;s parliamentary elections. Peter Magyar and his upstart Tisza won the election by a landslide on the promise of ending years of corruption and the &lsquo;illiberal democracy&rsquo; that became synonymous with Orb&aacute;n&rsquo;s tenure.
On today&rsquo;s Big Take podcast, former US Ambassador David Pressman sits down with Sarah Holder to discuss what Orb&aacute;n&rsquo;s loss means for Hungary&rsquo;s economy and political institutions, how a new leader could reshape its relationships with the EU and Russia and why President Trump and the MAGA movement are paying close attention.
Read more: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-04-12/forint-jumps-to-three-year-high-as-hungary-s-orban-is-voted-out">Hungarian Stocks and Forint Jump as Orban Loss Starts New Era</a>
We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/subscriptions/podcasts">Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.</a>
Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Eleanor Harrison-Dengate and Rachael Lewis-Krisky; Reported by Andras Gergely; Edited by Jeffrey Grocott.
Fact-checking by David Fox and Laura Newcombe; Engineering by Alex Sugiura.
Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

What Orbán’s Loss Means for Hungary, Russia and Trump

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/0995e488-3b71-4ad6-8cda-b42b016417e5/transcript

A core US demand heading into peace talks with Iran this weekend will be reopening the Strait of Hormuz, where a near-total shipping shutdown has led to rising global oil prices and threatened supplies of food, plastics, packaging and semiconductors.

On today’s Big Take podcast, Sarah Holder speaks with Tracy Alloway and Joe Weisenthal, hosts of Bloomberg’s Odd Lots podcast, about how the Hormuz shutdown is reverberating around commodities markets — and the lasting mark it could leave on the global supply chain even after ships start moving again.

For more Odd Lots episodes on Iran and commodities, check out:
How War in Iran Will Squeeze America's Farmers Even Further - Odd Lots 
The Petrochemicals Shock That's Already Rippling Through Plastics - Odd Lots

Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Rachael Lewis-Krisky.

Edited by Jeffrey Grocott.

Fact-checking by Eleanor Harrison-Dengate and Julia Press; Engineering by Katie McMurran.

Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

A core US demand heading into peace talks with Iran this weekend will be reopening the Strait of Hormuz, where a near-total shipping shutdown has led to rising global oil prices and threatened supplies of food, plastics, packaging and semiconductors.
On today&rsquo;s Big Take podcast, Sarah Holder speaks with Tracy Alloway and Joe Weisenthal, hosts of Bloomberg&rsquo;s Odd Lots podcast, about how the Hormuz shutdown is reverberating around commodities markets &mdash; and the lasting mark it could leave on the global supply chain even after ships start moving again.
For more Odd Lots episodes on Iran and commodities, check out:
<ul>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://omny.fm/shows/odd-lots/how-war-in-iran-will-squeeze-americas-farmers-even-further">How War in Iran Will Squeeze America's Farmers Even Further - Odd Lots</a>&nbsp;</li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://omny.fm/shows/odd-lots/the-petrochemicals-shock-thats-already-rippling-through-plastics">The Petrochemicals Shock That's Already Rippling Through Plastics - Odd Lots</a></li>
</ul>
Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Rachael Lewis-Krisky.
Edited by Jeffrey Grocott.
Fact-checking by Eleanor Harrison-Dengate and Julia Press; Engineering by Katie McMurran.
Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

It’s Not Just Oil. War in Iran Will Hike the Price of Nearly Everything You Buy

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/052fed3f-c78e-43a7-8a72-b428015fd310/transcript

Need a little ‘moon joy’? Over the past eight days, four astronauts on NASA's Artemis II mission have been flying through the cosmos, breaking records for human spaceflight and sharing never-before-seen images from the dark side of the moon.

On today’s Big Take podcast, guest host Stacey Vanek Smith and Bloomberg global space reporter Loren Grush talk about what the mission means for the future of galactic exploration and the burgeoning “lunar economy.”

Read more:
NASA’s Breathtaking Photos From Far Side of the Moon Evoke Wonder and Awe
NASA Crew Heads Back to Earth After Record Trip Around Moon

If you're interested in reading more but aren't yet a Bloomberg subscriber, we have a subscription offer for listeners at Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.

Hosted by Stacey Vanek Smith; Produced by David Fox; Reported by Loren Grush; Edited by Aaron Edwards.

Fact-checking by Eleanor Harrison-Dengate; Engineering by Katie McMurran.

Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

Need a little &lsquo;moon joy&rsquo;? Over the past eight days, four astronauts on NASA's Artemis II mission have been flying through the cosmos, breaking records for human spaceflight and sharing never-before-seen images from the dark side of the moon.
On today&rsquo;s Big Take podcast, guest host Stacey Vanek Smith and Bloomberg global space reporter Loren Grush talk about what the mission means for the future of galactic exploration and the burgeoning &ldquo;lunar economy.&rdquo;
Read more:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2026-04-07/artemis-ii-photos-amazing-images-of-far-side-of-moon-earth-by-nasa-crew">NASA&rsquo;s Breathtaking Photos From Far Side of the Moon Evoke Wonder and Awe</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-04-06/nasa-artemis-ii-astronauts-set-to-fly-by-far-side-of-the-moon">NASA Crew Heads Back to Earth After Record Trip Around Moon</a></li>
</ul>
If you're interested in reading more but aren't yet a Bloomberg subscriber, we have a subscription offer for listeners at<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/subscriptions/podcasts"> Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.</a> 
Hosted by Stacey Vanek Smith; Produced by David Fox; Reported by Loren Grush; Edited by Aaron Edwards.
Fact-checking by Eleanor Harrison-Dengate; Engineering by Katie McMurran.
Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

One Small Step for NASA, One Giant Leap for the Lunar Economy

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/88a54af0-8f23-47c1-afba-b4270161ed41/transcript

The Genius Minds Behind the World’s Best Poker Bots

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