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

Across the ideological spectrum, Supreme Court justices appeared wary of President Trump’s attempts to fire Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa Cook in a hearing on Wednesday. Their ruling, which is set to come by July, could set a crucial precedent for the executive branch’s influence over the central bank.

On today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg reporters Amara Omeokwe and Greg Stohr break down arguments from both sides of the case, analyze key reactions from justices on the bench and make sense of how the outcome could impact the economy and public confidence in the Fed.

Read more: Supreme Court Appears Wary of Trump Bid to Fire Fed’s Lisa Cook

Further listening: Why Trump Is Trying to Fire Lisa Cook

Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Julia Press; Reported by Amara Omeokwe and Greg Stohr; Edited by Aaron Edwards; Fact-checking by Eleanor Harrison-Dengate; Engineering by Alex Sugiura; Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

Across the ideological spectrum, Supreme Court justices appeared wary of President Trump&rsquo;s attempts to fire Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa Cook in a hearing on Wednesday. Their ruling, which is set to come by July, could set a crucial precedent for the executive branch&rsquo;s influence over the central bank.
On today&rsquo;s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg reporters Amara Omeokwe and Greg Stohr break down arguments from both sides of the case, analyze key reactions from justices on the bench and make sense of how the outcome could impact the economy and public confidence in the Fed.
Read more: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-01-21/supreme-court-appears-wary-of-trump-bid-to-fire-fed-s-cook">Supreme Court Appears Wary of Trump Bid to Fire Fed&rsquo;s Lisa Cook</a>
Further listening: <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/why-trump-is-trying-to-fire-lisa-cook/id1578096201">Why Trump Is Trying to Fire Lisa Cook</a>
Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Julia Press; Reported by Amara Omeokwe and Greg Stohr; Edited by Aaron Edwards; Fact-checking by Eleanor Harrison-Dengate; Engineering by Alex Sugiura; Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

Why Trump v. Cook Matters

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/4f596fac-3da6-437c-9107-b3da0161e00c/transcript

In an unprecedented speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, President Donald Trump ruled out taking Greenland by military force, but made his case for the US purchasing what he described as a “large piece of ice” — and vowed to “remember” if he didn’t get his way.

On today’s Big Take podcast, executive editor Flavia Krause-Jackson joins host David Gura to recap Trump’s stunning speech, the swift reaction from his peers and NATO allies and what, ultimately, could come next.

Hosted by David Gura; Produced by David Fox; Reported by Flavia Krause-Jackson; Edited by Jeffrey Grocott.

Fact-checking by Rachael Lewis-Krisky; Engineering by Alex Sigura.

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

In an unprecedented speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, President Donald Trump ruled out taking Greenland by military force, but made his case for the US purchasing what he described as a &ldquo;large piece of ice&rdquo; &mdash; and vowed to &ldquo;remember&rdquo; if he didn&rsquo;t get his way.
On today&rsquo;s Big Take podcast, executive editor Flavia Krause-Jackson joins host David Gura to recap Trump&rsquo;s stunning speech, the swift reaction from his peers and NATO allies and what, ultimately, could come next. Hosted by David Gura; Produced by David Fox; Reported by Flavia Krause-Jackson; Edited by Jeffrey Grocott.
Fact-checking by Rachael Lewis-Krisky; Engineering by Alex Sigura.
Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.&nbsp;

Trump Takes Europe to the Brink on Greenland

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/7cf28ce3-5ca9-45a1-bbf3-b3d901793b70/transcript

ICE has been open about its aggressive detention and deportation targets. And now, the agency has its sights set on a new kind of facility to house the people it arrests: converted warehouses that could detain 5,000 or more people.

On today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg reporters Fola Akinnibi and Sophie Alexander take host Sarah Holder inside their team’s reporting on the agency’s latest push to expand its detention capacity, the lucrative government contracts that companies are vying for and mounting concerns around safety for detainees.

Read more: 
ICE Plans Detention Expansion With Deal to Design ‘Mega Centers’
Companies With No Detention Experience Want to Run Trump’s ICE Camps

Further listening: Why Small Towns Are Hooked on ICE Detention

Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Julia Press; Reported by Sophie Alexander and Fola Akinnibi; Edited by Aaron Edwards; Fact-checking by Rachael Lewis-Krisky and David Fox; Engineering by Katie McMurran; Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

ICE has been open about its aggressive detention and deportation targets. And now, the agency has its sights set on a new kind of facility to house the people it arrests: converted warehouses that could detain 5,000 or more people.
On today&rsquo;s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg reporters Fola Akinnibi and Sophie Alexander take host Sarah Holder inside their team&rsquo;s reporting on the agency&rsquo;s latest push to expand its detention capacity, the lucrative government contracts that companies are vying for and mounting concerns around safety for detainees.
Read more:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-12-18/ice-plans-to-greatly-expand-detention-capacity">ICE Plans Detention Expansion With Deal to Design &lsquo;Mega Centers&rsquo;</a></li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2025-08-15/trump-s-ice-camps-turn-to-contractors-with-no-detention-experience">Companies With No Detention Experience Want to Run Trump&rsquo;s ICE Camps</a></li>
</ul>
Further listening:&nbsp;<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/small-towns-are-getting-hooked-on-ice-detention/id1578096201?i=1000708502921">Why Small Towns Are Hooked on ICE Detention</a>
Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Julia Press; Reported by Sophie Alexander and Fola Akinnibi; Edited by Aaron Edwards; Fact-checking by Rachael Lewis-Krisky and David Fox; Engineering by Katie McMurran; Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

Inside ICE’s Plan to Build Detention ‘Mega Centers’

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/ec8bf090-199c-4057-a604-b3d8016e731d/transcript

The Genius Minds Behind the World’s Best Poker Bots

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