Apps· iPhone app· In development
ChessMachina
Play the evolution of computer chess.
From El Ajedrecista to Deep Blue and a modern local engine, ChessMachina makes different generations of machine chess thinking playable and understandable.
No public App Store release yet.
- Development stage: Native iPhone app in development
- Platform
- iPhone app
- Processing
- Local-first
- Account
- No account
- App Store status
- In development
ChessMachina runs locally on iPhone, with no account and no custom cloud engine. The app is in development and is not yet available on the App Store.
Features
9 historical stations
From 1912 (El Ajedrecista) to 1997 (Deep Blue).
Compute mode
Own modern engine with an adjustable compute budget.
Explainability
Surface rules, candidate moves, minimax, and search depth.
Clean-room reconstruction
Historical algorithms rebuilt from available documentation.
Local game history
Games, opponents, and engine version stored locally.
Replay
Reconstruct games from starting position and moves.
Historical transparency
Documented and reconstructed parts clearly separated.
No fake Elo
No uncalibrated or invented Elo ratings.
Local-first
No account, no custom server, no cloud engine.
German and English
App interface available in German and English.
01
Why ChessMachina
How much thinking does it take to beat you? ChessMachina answers this in two ways: with reconstructed historical chess machines and with its own modern local engine whose compute budget you control yourself.
02
Historical mode
Play against nine reconstructed stations of computer chess history, from 1912 to 1997. The machines are algorithmically rebuilt from available historical documentation, not with original code and not by emulating the original hardware.
03
Compute mode
Compute Mode uses its own modern local reference engine. You control how much computation the engine gets per move through reproducible work or node budgets. ChessMachina does not display CPU percentages, energy consumption, or an exact Elo rating.
04
How the machines think
Depending on the machine, ChessMachina shows how a decision was reached: rules, candidate moves, minimax, alpha-beta, search depth, singular extensions, or historical search extensions. Not every machine has the same metrics, since historical and modern algorithms work differently.
05
Games & replay
Games you play land in a local game history together with the opponent and engine version. A saved game can be reconstructed as a replay from its starting position and move sequence and watched again.
06
Historical transparency
ChessMachina uses clean-room reconstructions based on available historical documentation. Depending on the machine, algorithm fidelity, parameter fidelity, hardware fidelity, data asset fidelity, and behavioral fidelity differ. Missing original parameters or historical data are never presented as original.
Historical timeline
Nine reconstructed stations of computer chess history, from 1912 to 1997.
- 01
El Ajedrecista
Early chess automaton by Leonardo Torres y Quevedo for a limited king-and-rook endgame.
1912
- 02
Turochamp
Chess algorithm designed by Alan Turing and David Champernowne, originally executed by hand due to a lack of computing power.
1948
- 03
MANIAC I
One of the first chess programs to actually run on a computer, played on a reduced 6×6 board.
1956
- 04
Bernstein IBM 704
Early full chess program on a standard 8×8 board, developed by Alex Bernstein at IBM.
1957
- 05
Mac Hack VI
MIT program by Richard Greenblatt, among the first chess programs to compete in tournaments against human players.
1967
- 06
CHESS 4.5
Northwestern University program that significantly advanced brute-force search techniques.
1977
- 07
Belle
Specialized chess hardware by Ken Thompson and Joe Condon, reaching master-level playing strength.
1980
- 08
Deep Thought 0.02
Predecessor of Deep Blue, developed at Carnegie Mellon University.
1988
- 09
Deep Blue
IBM chess computer that in 1997 defeated a reigning world champion under tournament conditions.
1997
Privacy
Local first
ChessMachina requires no account and has no custom server and no custom cloud engine. The historical and modern engines compute locally on your iPhone. No custom analytics, no tracking.
ChessMachina in action
Real app screenshots will be added before release.
- Historical Mode
- Timeline
- Compute Mode
- Explainability
- Games & Replay
FAQ
ChessMachina is a native iPhone app that lets you play against reconstructed historical chess machines or a modern local reference engine.
No. ChessMachina requires no user account and no registration.
Historical and modern engines compute locally on your device. This does not automatically apply to external links outside the app.
Historical Mode lets you play against nine reconstructed stations of computer chess history, from 1912 to 1997.
No. These are clean-room reconstructions based on available historical documentation, not original code and not emulated original hardware.
Accuracy differs per machine across algorithm, parameter, hardware, data-asset, and behavioral fidelity. Missing original data is never presented as original.
Compute Mode uses ChessMachina's own modern local reference engine with a compute budget you can adjust.
Without a calibrated measurement, an Elo number would be misleading. ChessMachina instead shows compute budget and, where available, traceable decision characteristics.
Locally on your device.
Yes. Saved games can be reconstructed via replay from their starting position and move sequence.
The app interface is available in German and English.
No. ChessMachina is in development and does not yet have a public App Store release.
