Anthropic’s Claude AI Plays Pokémon on Twitch, Showcasing AI Reasoning

Anthropic has launched "Claude Plays Pokémon," a Twitch livestream where its latest AI model, Claude 3.7 Sonnet, attempts to play Pokémon Red. The experiment serves as both a demonstration of AI reasoning capabilities and a nostalgic callback to past Twitch gaming events.

AI vs. Pokémon: A Slow but Fascinating Experiment

AI researchers have long used video games—from Street Fighter to Pictionary—as benchmarks for AI reasoning and problem-solving. Anthropic claims Pokémon Red is a particularly useful test for Claude 3.7 Sonnet, as it requires:

• Logical decision-making to solve puzzles.

• Pattern recognition to navigate the game world.

• Trial-and-error learning to advance through challenges.

Claude 3.7 Sonnet has already demonstrated notable improvements over its predecessor, Claude 3.5 Sonnet, which struggled to exit the player’s home at the start of the game. The new model has progressed much further, earning three gym leader badges.

However, Claude’s slow and methodical reasoning process has also led to some amusing failures, such as getting stuck behind a rock wall for hours. As one Twitch user humorously put it: "Who would win, a computer AI with thousands of hours put into programming it, or 1 rock wall?"

After several failed attempts, Claude eventually figured out an alternate route around the wall.

For longtime Twitch users, Claude Plays Pokémon may feel reminiscent of the viral Twitch Plays Pokémon event from over a decade ago. In that community-driven experiment, thousands of users worked together—often chaotically—to control a single game character.

This time, though, we’re just spectators, watching an AI take on the challenge alone. Some viewers find the slow pace frustrating, while others are entertained by the bizarre charm of an AI struggling with tasks many humans mastered as kids.

At one point, Claude attempted to locate Professor Oak inside his laboratory but became confused by the presence of multiple NPCs.

"I notice a new character has appeared below me—a character with black hair and what appears to be a white coat at coordinates (2,10)," Claude reasoned. "This might be Professor Oak! Let me go down and talk to him."

However, instead of speaking to Professor Oak, Claude mistakenly approached an NPC it had already interacted with multiple times. As frustration grew in the Twitch chat, some viewers became impatient, while others—especially those who had been watching for a while—remained unfazed, having seen the AI struggle through similar challenges before.

One Twitch user defended Claude’s progress, writing: "Guys chill. Before, we exited and entered Oak’s lab like 10 times before understanding how to move on."

AI and Gaming: A Research Playground

Some AI researchers have used Pokémon as a testbed for machine learning experiments. In October 2023, Seattle-based software engineer Peter Whidden trained a reinforcement learning algorithm to play Pokémon. The AI spent over 50,000 hours learning the game but initially struggled—not due to the game’s mechanics, but because it preferred to admire the pixelated scenery rather than progress.

Like Whidden’s AI, Claude Plays Pokémon is part of a growing trend of AI-driven gaming experiments. While these projects offer insight into how AI models learn and reason, they also reflect broader questions about AI’s role in entertainment, problem-solving, and interactive media.

What This Means

Claude’s Pokémon-playing experiment is more than just entertainment—it highlights how AI models are improving at reasoning-based tasks. Unlike reinforcement learning AIs trained for thousands of hours, Claude 3.7 Sonnet is using step-by-step reasoning in real time, making it a unique benchmark for evaluating AI’s problem-solving abilities.

At the same time, this stream reflects a broader shift in digital experiences. Unlike Twitch Plays Pokémon, where people worked together to overcome a challenge, Claude Plays Pokémon is a solo AI performance—a microcosm of how AI is replacing communal interactions with spectator-driven experiences.

Looking Ahead

As AI models continue to demonstrate reasoning skills, experiments like this raise important questions:

Can AI eventually master complex games as humans do?

Will AI-driven entertainment reshape how we engage with games?

Are we moving from interactive digital communities to passive AI spectatorship?

Whether Claude 3.7 Sonnet eventually beats Pokémon Red or continues getting lost in Pallet Town, one thing is certain—watching AI struggle can be just as fascinating as watching it succeed.

Editor’s Note: This article was created by Alicia Shapiro, CMO of AiNews.com, with writing, image, and idea-generation support from ChatGPT, an AI assistant. However, the final perspective and editorial choices are solely Alicia Shapiro’s. Special thanks to ChatGPT for assistance with research and editorial support in crafting this article.