A top poker player has won $117 in a showdown against ChatGPT, an advanced artificial intelligence language model.

Paul Watson won the money at the exclusive Club 52 in an event hosted by Cactus, the Bermudian-based technology company.

A spokesman for the event said: “While the AI model demonstrated an understanding of the game, it lost $117 to its flesh-and-blood opponent. Despite the outcome, the event showcased the potential of artificial intelligence in complex, real-life scenarios.”

The event was overseen by Euell Smith, the dealer for the showdown.

Mr Smith, who has played poker all over the world, shared his excitement: "As a nerd and poker enthusiast, I'm thrilled to be part of this groundbreaking event. The possibilities for AI in the future are limitless, and I can't wait to see where it leads."

Organisers said the highlight of the afternoon was when ChatGPT won a hand with a pair of kings but almost managed to hallucinate the victory away, declaring it had only a king high after making a $20 bet, its strongest of the day.

Cactus co-founder James Robinson, the event organiser, said: "With no preparation, we had been able to get the computer to understand what cards it had been dealt and that it was playing poker.

“For the first hour, we were able to get it to give instructions to me as the human to fold, check, call, raise and even go all-in.

“With more preparation next time, we will be able to use GPT-4 for the whole session, and then I think that Paul won't have as easy a time of it."

Mr Watson said: "It was an honour to take part, I appreciated James thinking that I would be a worthy opponent for the computer.

“Playing against an AI opponent like ChatGPT was a unique and exciting experience. I'm looking forward to our rematch in May."

Unfortunately, after an hour, ChatGPT began consistently repeating that, as an AI, it could not play poker, effectively going on strike, organisers said.

Cactus said it remains committed to exploring the integration of GPT into the workflows of its clients, particularly in the insurance industry, where the technology can assist in analysing lengthy and complex documents.

The company is planning a second showdown, slated for May, and is eager to further showcase the capabilities of ChatGPT and its potential applications across various industries.

Cactus is a technology company specialising in improving the way insurance data moves around the market in London, New York and Bermuda.

By leveraging advanced AI models like ChatGPT, Cactus said, it aims to improve underwriters’ access to key information.