Do AI explanations actually help when studying GTO?

We've been adding AI explanations across Optimus Poker, especially in Train Mode, because one thing we kept noticing is that solver outputs can be pretty hard to turn into something you actually understand and remember.

You make a decision, compare it with GTO, and instead of only seeing frequencies and EVs, the AI tries to explain why the decision is good or bad in plain English.

We're curious what players actually think about this approach.

Do AI explanations help you study GTO, or do you still prefer working directly with raw solver data?

And if you use AI while studying:

• What makes an explanation genuinely useful?
• Do you prefer short/simple explanations or more technical ones?
• What information should an AI explanation always include?
• Is there anything AI tends to oversimplify when explaining poker spots?

Would love to hear how people are using this kind of feature in practice.

I don't think ai is good for poker skills. .

I am absolutely using AI to learn GTO. Before I discovered Optimus Poker I was cutting and pasting various GTO outputs (from other trainers and solvers) into Chat GPT & Gemini for more detailed and nuanced explanations.

I love the AI explanations integrated into the Optimus Poker Solver/Trainer! That said, I do still copy and paste the Optimus screens into ChatGPT and Gemini when I want more. BTW - I cannot copy and paste images into your AI Poker Mentor like I can with both ChatGPT and Gemini.

Your AI Hand Analysis data screen combined with the "4) TAKEAWAY" section is my first go-to, but I do read the other sections for additional info and find them useful as well. There is little I would change here.





I want to know why my play is considered not perfect (i.e., correct, mistake, blunder). I particularly want to know why one play may be heavily favoured even though there is only a marginal difference in EV. I want the explanation to include factors such as SPR, draws and how they influence the play, especially backdoor draws. I want to know when we are covering bluffs.

You pretty much have this aced! The level you go to right now is sufficient (in fact there is a little, not a lot, of repetitious text I would cut) as a first level of explanation. But an option for a second more detailed, more nuanced level would be even better. It would be nice be able to tailor the explanation to my level of understanding.

It's just that sometimes I don't understand and that's when I'd like to be able to access more detailed and nuanced screens and ask questions like I can with ChatGPT & Gemini. I know that's possible with the AI Poker Mentor, but since that screen is not integrated with the trainer and solver screens (and I can't copy & paste screenshots within Optimus) it's much easier to do with ChatGPT & Gemini.

I think it does a great of explaining things like why it likes certain bet sizes.

It may say you are betting 25% of pot because it is a "range bet" in the position and situation you are betting your entire range not your hand.

Or it may say you are you are betting a 125% of pot because you are repping a polarized range.

The whole beauty of it is when you dont understand, you can ask AI why. Sometimes I do not understand their explanation and I just ask them to explain it in simpler terms.

u only learn to become better playing more hands not this gto fool tool

I had a session with Gem and chatgpt, they've got the strategies down but they can't read a board. When I had a draw chatgpt and Gem kept saying I had the straight, and I argued with it and said at this stage on the turn I had a straight draw, they replied, your correct 🙄. I thought they would have the board reading down but not yet 😂

Just thought I'll add that session wasn't with me playing poker it was me dealing myself a hand and dealing flop, turn and river. I thought Charlie (chatgpt) could be my poker coach 😂 I'll only use them to pick a horse for me if I ever go to the Chester races again 😊

TeUnit said:

I think it does a great of explaining things like why it likes certain bet sizes.

It may say you are betting 25% of pot because it is a "range bet" in the position and situation you are betting your entire range not your hand.

Or it may say you are you are betting a 125% of pot because you are repping a polarized range.

The whole beauty of it is when you dont understand, you can ask AI why. Sometimes I do not understand their explanation and I just ask them to explain it in simpler terms.

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Exactly that’s the part we find most interesting too.

Seeing “bet 25%” or “bet 125%” in a solver is one thing, but understanding why one spot is a range bet while another is built around a polarized range is what actually makes the output useful for learning.

That’s something we’ve tried to build directly into OptimusPoker not just showing the GTO answer, but using AI to explain the reasoning behind it in a more understandable way.

The follow-up part you mention is important as well. Sometimes the first explanation simply isn’t the explanation that clicks for that particular player.

If you want to have a look: https://optimuspoker.com

alabala said:

I don't think ai is good for poker skills. .

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You’re right “AI” is probably too broad a term here.

What we really mean is poker-specific LLMs/oracles grounded in GTO data, rather than generic AI tools trying to analyse poker from scratch.

Tools like ChatGPT or Gemini can be useful, but for poker they can also misunderstand the hand, miss important context or give explanations that simply don’t make sense from a GTO perspective.

That’s exactly why, we integrate AI directly into our games and solver: the AI works with the actual hand context and GTO outputs instead of guessing from a generic prompt.

The same idea applies to our AI Poker Mentor the goal is to explain the strategy, not replace the underlying solver.

EvertonGirl said:

I had a session with Gem and chatgpt, they've got the strategies down but they can't read a board. When I had a draw chatgpt and Gem kept saying I had the straight, and I argued with it and said at this stage on the turn I had a straight draw, they replied, your correct 🙄. I thought they would have the board reading down but not yet 😂

Just thought I'll add that session wasn't with me playing poker it was me dealing myself a hand and dealing flop, turn and river. I thought Charlie (chatgpt) could be my poker coach 😂 I'll only use them to pick a horse for me if I ever go to the Chester races again 😊

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😂 That’s exactly the kind of problem I mean.

ChatGPT and Gemini can be really useful for explaining poker concepts, but if they misread the board or misunderstand the hand, the whole analysis can go wrong very quickly.

That’s why I think poker-specific AI works better when it already has the hand and solver context, rather than trying to reconstruct everything from a screenshot or description.

Charlie might still have a future at Chester races though 😂

EvertonGirl said:

I had a session with Gem and chatgpt, they've got the strategies down but they can't read a board. When I had a draw chatgpt and Gem kept saying I had the straight, and I argued with it and said at this stage on the turn I had a straight draw, they replied, your correct 🙄. I thought they would have the board reading down but not yet 😂

Just thought I'll add that session wasn't with me playing poker it was me dealing myself a hand and dealing flop, turn and river. I thought Charlie (chatgpt) could be my poker coach 😂 I'll only use them to pick a horse for me if I ever go to the Chester races again 😊

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I know - I've pasted a lot of hands into both. There is a very small, but real error rate in reading the boards. That said I've gotten many solid explanations and interpretations of poker situations. Of course, AI has that same small but real error rate in interpreting all sorts of things. I guess it has the to do with bridging the gap between pure computations and human like thinking.

optimus.poker said:

😂 That’s exactly the kind of problem I mean.

ChatGPT and Gemini can be really useful for explaining poker concepts, but if they misread the board or misunderstand the hand, the whole analysis can go wrong very quickly.

That’s why I think poker-specific AI works better when it already has the hand and solver context, rather than trying to reconstruct everything from a screenshot or description.

Charlie might still have a future at Chester races though 😂

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Nice try @optimus.poker. You should know by now that I'm a fan of your App, but your AI explanations miss the mark occasionally too. I've seen obvious errors in your app, similar to those I've seen in the more generic AI assistants. If I had to guess I'd say pretty much to the same degree as ChatGPT & Gemini.

None of which makes me any less likely to use the Optimus AI Poker Mentor (or ChatGPT or Gemini). I just use them in different ways with slightly different goals. Trust, but verify.

optimus.poker said:

That’s exactly why, we integrate AI directly into our games and solver: the AI works with the actual hand context and GTO outputs instead of guessing from a generic prompt.

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This is a huge plus!

I think that AI explanations may be really helpful for the new players, since the raw data from the solver tells you only the GTO line to take, while the explanatory part will give more insights on why exactly you should do this or that. I think it's better to have shorter explanations on the most relevant parts (ranges, frequencies, EV) and give an option to expand it for those who want to get more details on the subject. Most importantly, I think that the AI should not over-simplify the information, especially if it comes to positions, ranges and stack sizes, which are really important in poker decision-making. Teaching the player how to think about the hand, rather than just giving them answers, is the best kind of educational content, in my opinion.

Nameless14 said:

I think that AI explanations may be really helpful for the new players, since the raw data from the solver tells you only the GTO line to take, while the explanatory part will give more insights on why exactly you should do this or that. I think it's better to have shorter explanations on the most relevant parts (ranges, frequencies, EV) and give an option to expand it for those who want to get more details on the subject. Most importantly, I think that the AI should not over-simplify the information, especially if it comes to positions, ranges and stack sizes, which are really important in poker decision-making. Teaching the player how to think about the hand, rather than just giving them answers, is the best kind of educational content, in my opinion.

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Exactly. I think the real value of AI in GTO study is not just telling you what the solver prefers, but helping you understand why.

Keeping the first explanation focused on the key points, then allowing players to go deeper into ranges, frequencies, EV, stack sizes, etc. makes a lot of sense.

And I completely agree with your last point: the goal should be to teach players how to think through similar spots themselves, not just give them the correct answer.

EvertonGirl said:

I had a session with Gem and chatgpt, they've got the strategies down but they can't read a board. When I had a draw chatgpt and Gem kept saying I had the straight, and I argued with it and said at this stage on the turn I had a straight draw, they replied, your correct 🙄. I thought they would have the board reading down but not yet 😂

Just thought I'll add that session wasn't with me playing poker it was me dealing myself a hand and dealing flop, turn and river. I thought Charlie (chatgpt) could be my poker coach 😂 I'll only use them to pick a horse for me if I ever go to the Chester races again 😊

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There's a video about this here :


Classic LLMs are bad at poker. Only an AI LLM trained deeply in poker knowledge and GTO can be helpful. And in this case, it becomes very very helpful, like the best coach in the world basically.

Artificial Intelligence can help with a lot of things, but you guys need to be careful, because they're not 100% reliable, I've seen a lot of AI give wrong information, especially on specific subjects like Poker, use it in moderation.

I think AI explanations are a great addition, especially for players who are still learning GTO concepts. Solver outputs are incredibly powerful, but they can be overwhelming if you only see frequencies and EV numbers without understanding the reasoning behind them.
For me, the most useful explanations are short, clear, and focused on the key factors behind the decision things like range advantage, board texture, position, stack depth, and why one action performs better than another. After that, it's helpful to compare the explanation with the raw solver data to see how everything fits together.
One thing I hope AI avoids is giving overly confident answers in spots where multiple actions are close in EV. It's important to explain why mixed strategies exist rather than presenting one play as the only correct option.
Overall, I see AI as a learning tool rather than a replacement for studying solver outputs. When used together, they make learning much faster and easier to remember.

khushalprem said:

I think AI explanations are a great addition, especially for players who are still learning GTO concepts. Solver outputs are incredibly powerful, but they can be overwhelming if you only see frequencies and EV numbers without understanding the reasoning behind them.
For me, the most useful explanations are short, clear, and focused on the key factors behind the decision things like range advantage, board texture, position, stack depth, and why one action performs better than another. After that, it's helpful to compare the explanation with the raw solver data to see how everything fits together.
One thing I hope AI avoids is giving overly confident answers in spots where multiple actions are close in EV. It's important to explain why mixed strategies exist rather than presenting one play as the only correct option.
Overall, I see AI as a learning tool rather than a replacement for studying solver outputs. When used together, they make learning much faster and easier to remember.

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This is very close to how we see it as well.

The goal shouldn't be to replace the solver output, but to make the reasoning behind those frequencies and EV numbers easier to understand. Things like range advantage, board texture, position and stack depth are much more useful when they're connected directly to the decision you're studying.

And your point about mixed strategies is especially important. If two actions are very close in EV, the explanation shouldn't pretend that one of them is simply "correct". Understanding why the solver mixes in those situations is often one of the most valuable parts of studying GTO.

Ideally, AI helps you understand what to look for, and then you can verify it against the actual solver data.

optimus.poker said:

We've been adding AI explanations across Optimus Poker, especially in Train Mode, because one thing we kept noticing is that solver outputs can be pretty hard to turn into something you actually understand and remember.

You make a decision, compare it with GTO, and instead of only seeing frequencies and EVs, the AI tries to explain why the decision is good or bad in plain English.

We're curious what players actually think about this approach.

Do AI explanations help you study GTO, or do you still prefer working directly with raw solver data?

And if you use AI while studying:

• What makes an explanation genuinely useful?
• Do you prefer short/simple explanations or more technical ones?
• What information should an AI explanation always include?
• Is there anything AI tends to oversimplify when explaining poker spots?

Would love to hear how people are using this kind of feature in practice.

Click to expand...

It certainly helps a lot. AI is right in its element when it comes to mathematical, statistical, and tactical scenarios. Not to mention that as you train your AI, its decision-making processes become increasingly sophisticated and sharp—especially regarding pattern recognition. However, poker is ultimately an arbitrary game because it relies on incomplete information or assumptions based on expected behaviors. When you play against multiple opponents who lack rhyme or reason—playing without any discernible patterns—it becomes impossible to gain an edge. In fact, unpredictability is a trait we should aim for; yet, even that balance is shaped within a pattern. You establish a pattern so you can then play around within it—balancing value bets and bluffs, trying to extract maximum value, and varying your bet sizing based on the range, value, and blu