Boris Alterman: The Grandmaster Who Taught Computers to Play
Most grandmasters spend their careers beating other humans. Boris Alterman spent a crucial part of his helping a machine beat the best human of all. A strong grandmaster and Israeli champion in his own right, Alterman became a pioneer of computer chess, lending his human understanding to the Deep Junior program that fought the world's greatest player to a standstill — and then became one of the game's most beloved teachers.
A Soviet Prodigy in Israel
Boris Alterman was born on 4 May 1970 in Kharkiv, in Soviet Ukraine, and emigrated to Israel, where he earned the grandmaster title in 1992. He established himself among the country's elite, winning the Israeli championship and competing strongly internationally. He was a fine practical player — but his most distinctive contribution would come not across the board from another grandmaster, but beside a computer.
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Alterman became deeply involved in the development of Deep Junior, the Israeli chess engine that was, for a time, among the strongest in the world. The role of a grandmaster consultant to a chess program is subtle and vital: the machine calculates, but a human of Alterman's strength helps shape its opening book, its evaluation priorities, and its strategic understanding.
The partnership reached its peak in 2003, when Deep Junior played a six-game match against Garry Kasparov — then widely regarded as the greatest player in history — and drew, three games each. It was one of the landmark man-versus-machine confrontations in chess history, and Alterman's fingerprints were on the program that achieved it.
The Educator
In his later career Alterman became one of the most popular chess teachers in the world. His 'Alterman Gambit Guide' and his extensive online lectures, delivered with clarity and warmth, introduced countless amateurs to the romantic, attacking gambits of chess history. He turned out to have a rare gift for explanation, and he used it to bring the game's beauty to a mass audience.
Why This Matters
Alterman matters because he sat at the frontier where human chess met artificial intelligence — and helped a machine reach the summit. The 2003 Deep Junior–Kasparov match was a milestone in the long story of computers overtaking humans at the game, and Alterman was one of the humans who made the machine strong enough to get there.
He matters, too, as a teacher. Many grandmasters can play; few can explain. By devoting his later years to education, Alterman extended the reach of the game far beyond the elite, giving ordinary players access to the understanding that had taken him a lifetime to acquire. The Israeli grandmaster who helped a computer draw with Kasparov spent his second act making the human game more joyful for everyone else.
Achievements
- Grandmaster title (1992)
- Israeli national champion
- Key grandmaster consultant to the Deep Junior chess engine
- Deep Junior drew a celebrated 2003 match with Garry Kasparov
- Renowned chess educator (the 'Alterman Gambit Guide')
