COMPUTER BRIDGE - A BIG WIN FOR AI PLANNING

A computer program that uses Al planning techniques is now the world c hampion computer program in the game of Contract Bridge. As reported i n The New York Times and The Washington Post, this program-a new versi on of Great Game Products' BRIDGE BARON program-won the Baron Barclay World Bridge Computer Challenge, an international competition hosted i n July 1997 by the American Contract Bridge League. It is well known t hat the game tree search techniques used in computer programs for game s such as Chess and Checkers work differently from how humans think ab out such games. In contrast, our new version of the BRIDGE BARON emula tes the way in which a human might plan declarer play in Bridge by usi ng an adaptation of hierarchical task network planning. This article g ives an overview of the planning techniques that we have incorporated into the BRIDGE BARON and discusses what the program's victory signifi es for research on AI planning and game playing.