AlphaZero: Will People Treat Chess the Way they Treat Tic-Tac-Toe?

Of course, chess will be a challenge to *everyone*.  The question really is, Do people want to take up a challenge when it's been solved or conquered by computers?  Of course, some people will.  So then, the real question is, "Will interest in chess dwindle *significantly* as a result of AlphaZero?"

Now one answer could be, "Nah, interest in chess didn't dwindle significantly when Deep Blue defeated World Champion Garry Kasparov, did it?  In fact, it increased!  So why would AlphaZero's triumph cause interest in chess to decrease?"

I don't know.  That's a valid response.

Chess aficionados have been bombarded (and rightfully so) by the news of AlphaZero teaching itself in a matter of hours to destroy StockFish.  Regardless of whether it was a Google publicity stunt, we still have GM's utterly stunned and in awe of AlphaZero's moves.  (Eg., GM Peter Svidler and GM Alex Colovic).

Possible Downline Consequence or Implication of this:  Will people treat chess like the way they treat tic-tac-toe?  In other words, is this the "death" of chess?

All analogies are imperfect.  Given that proviso, people treat tic-tac-toe with a mild amusement.  Fun for playing with young children and teaching them to think and visualize in advance.  And then seeing them learn with perfect play that the 2nd player can always get a draw, i.e., "Cat's Game."

And so, Tic-Tac-Toe, while not technically dead, is relegated with a shrug of the shoulders to a child's amusement *because it has been solved with best play*, and unworthy to spend much more time on it.

The question then becomes, will chess follow the same fate, albeit inexorably slower, as tic-tac-toe?  Imagine if you will a conversation between a skeptical Chess Parent and Chess Son/Daughter:

Son:  "Mom, Dad, I won a chess tournament, and got a chess trophy!!  I love studying and playing chess.  Spending a couple of hours a day on chess has paid off!"

Parent:  "Congratulations Son!  That's really nice.  But I have to have a heart-to-heart with you even though you're happy and I'm happy for you.  You see, even the best grandmasters in the world are patzers compared to Chess Programs and Chess Engines.   Humans will never beat computers.  And it's just about solved."

Son:  "What do you mean "solved"?"

Parent:  "Remember tic-tac-toe?  Where with best play it's always a "Cat's Game"?  Same thing with chess.  Best play is a draw.  Look at the recent London Chess Classic.  Vast majority of games are draws."

Son:  "So what are you really saying?"

Parent:  "Uhh, I want you to enjoy what you enjoy, and perhaps you might want to enjoy studying, learning, training in something that has a future, a career, has some money potential in it, ya know?"

Next day.  Son says:  "Fug."

Parent:  "What?"

Son:  "There's a girl at school I really like.  And she walked by me while I was hunched over a chess board.  And she said, 'Ya know, chess is dead.  Haven't you heard of a program called AlphaZero?  Why are you wasting time on that game?"

Parent:  "But, but, but, look at all the benefits of chess!  You learn Concentration, Patience, Calculation, Visualization, Consequences of Decisions, Planning, Decision-making, Decision-Making under Time Pressure!"

Son:  "Yeah.  But I could learn all that learning to be a chef.  Look at all those Food Network shows that mom watches!  Like Chopped and Iron Chef.  They're all timed competitions.  And they gotta concentrate and make decisions under time pressure too!"

And afterwards, the chess set was placed on the game shelves next to the game of "Sorry!" and only to be taken out on rare occasion.

Tic-Tac-Toe: 255268 possible games

Chess: 10^120 possible games

Chess will not get solved anytime soon. Even if it does, even the best GMs will not be able to play a 100% perfect game.