can even the top professionals truly compete?

I've been thinking about how much the game has changed since AI came into play. I remember watching Doug Polk and Linus Loeliger go head-to-head in old online games, and it felt like raw instinct and deep pattern recognition were king. But now with bots that can calculate GTO lines better than any human, I wonder—can even the top professionals truly compete? Or are they just adapting what the bots teach? Curious what you guys think.

That's a legit question, and one I’ve been mulling over too. I’ve been playing mid-stakes online for the past few years, and honestly, it’s becoming harder to tell the difference between a sharp reg and a well-tuned AI script. What’s crazy is that even the pros now rely on solvers for post-game review. They’re still human, sure, but they're practically blending with machine playstyles.
What’s wild is how sites are now full of hybrid players who study using bots but don’t realize how much it changes their intuition at the table. There’s a great article that breaks this down, looking at how AI has actually shifted how humans approach risk and deception. It's not just that bots are better at bluff-catching—it's that they’ve taught players to do it more methodically. You might wanna check it out here: https://aipokerbot.com/blog/
It really digs into the practical edge AI is giving players—not just theoretically, but in how it's rewiring playbooks across the board.

Interesting points from both of you. I’ve seen it firsthand too—especially in training groups where people just mimic solver outputs without understanding the why. It's like intuition is being replaced by mimicry. I’m not saying it’s bad, just... different. The game’s evolving fast.