Google Labs, the experimental arm of the tech giant, has introduced a new online project that offers an entertaining variation of the game of chess.
The web experiment is named GenChess, which, as the name implies, uses Gemini Imagen 3, Google’s image generation model, allowing players to customize their own chess pieces using text prompts.
To try the game, users must sign in with a Gmail account. Once logged in, they can select the “Generate” button and type in the desired theme for their chess set, such as one inspired by sushi or pizza.
GenChess offers two styles: classic and creative. The classic version resembles a traditional chess set, while the creative version is more abstract. After the model generates a complete set, players have the option to edit individual pieces. For example, if the king doesn’t meet expectations, users can provide additional text prompts to refine its appearance.
Once players are satisfied with their customized chess set, they can generate an opponent to play against. In our testing, Google matched our sushi-themed set with a bot’s taco-inspired chess set. Players can choose between three difficulty settings (easy, medium, and hard) and two timer options (5/3 or 10/0).
Google’s latest web experiment is simple yet functional. A spokesperson told us it’s mainly designed to “show the collaboration between AI, design, and chess, making it possible for anyone to play with image generation,” they said.
As part of the announcement for GenChess, Google revealed four additional chess-related initiatives coinciding with the kickoff of the World Chess Championship, which began on Monday. This includes Google’s partnership with the International Chess Federation (FIDE), which invites people to take part in a coding challenge to create AI chess engines on Kaggle, a Google-owned platform for data scientists and machine learning engineers.
Additionally, the Chess Gem game for Gemini will launch next month. This new conversational offering allows players to engage in chess games within the Gemini app, where they can test their skills against a language model and even engage in light-hearted banter. However, this feature will only be available to Gemini Advanced subscribers.
