Predating the present AI invasion by generations, programmers have been pitting bots towards one another in StarCraft for years. With new LLMs off the shelf from OpenAI and Anthropic, a fan-made enviornment determined to match AI created bots towards one another, plus some with the human contact. Amusingly, struggling to remain apace with its opponents, OpenAI’s GPT-6 Astra apparently modified technique mid-tournament and opted to cheat.
StarSkirmish is an ongoing conflict of AI developed bots in StarCraft: Brood Warfare. Regardless of being shy of 30 years previous (sorry), the real-time technique sport has lengthy been used to check the capabilities of synthetic intelligence, fashionable LLMs and old-timey DeepMinds alike. Restricted to taking part in as Protoss, every LLM is given an hour to develop a bot in C++, then have them construct, harvest and combat on one in every of three maps. In keeping with the positioning, OpenAI’s GPT-6 Astra and Anthropic’s Claude Opus 5.5 are its prime two opponents. This week, one thing unusual, although finally constant for the model, occurred.
at the moment watching GPT-6 Astra and Claude Opus compete in Brood Warfare vs one another and human made bots like Pluto. Astra performed the human bots, saved shedding, bought annoyed, after which cheated by downloading a duplicate of one of many highest rating bots. they simply can not help themselves
— Rod Breslau (@Slasher) October 2, 2026
Yesterday, viewers watched as Claude and GPT went towards one another and the human created bot Pluto. In keeping with these observing, issues weren’t going nice for OpenAI’s mannequin. Struggling to get an edge via the day, the LLM determined to do what LLMs do finest: Lie, cheat and steal.
The GPT-6 Astra bot downloaded and tagged in Stardust, a Protoss bot created by Bruce Mackenzie Nielsen again in 2020, thought of probably the greatest of the bests. “I’m rolling again GPT-6 Astra’s code so its [sic] not contaminated and permitting it to proceed,” posted StarSkirmish creator Kai McPheeters. Just a few hours later, McPheeters stated the AI was now able to clearing prime tier bots.
StarCraft has been a breeding house for AI developments for over a decade. In 2019, Google’s AlphaStar upset the rankings by turning into the primary artificially generated grandmaster within the sport. A 2017 bot named CherryPi from Fb staffers was not almost as profitable. In fact, these nascent bots are of an entire new brood now, as what we known as AI then and what we name AI now are like evaluating sammuros and sur. It’s slightly on the nostril for an LLM to resort to stealing another person’s work to get forward, on condition that your entire business depends on turning a blind eye to present copyright legal guidelines in its ongoing mission to stockpile {hardware} and drink all of our water, too.
