EP 439 — Samuel Sonning (Founder of NoctieAI): The Instructive Value of Memorizing Games, the Benefit of Losing Rating Points, and a Deep Dive on Chess and AI

Jun 17, 2025

Samuel Sonning, the founder of NoctieAI and a former Google engineer, shares his insights on chess improvement through memorizing master games, which boosted his intuition. He explains how losses in rating can be beneficial for growth. The conversation delves into NoctieAI's innovative feedback mechanisms that enhance learning, emphasizing real-time reactions to moves. Samuel also discusses the role of AI in chess education, blending human intuition with technological advancements, and reflects on the evolving landscape of chess and machine learning.

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ANECDOTE

Memorizing Master Games

Samuel Sonning improved his chess by memorizing famous master games and replaying them from memory.
This practice enhanced his visualization skills and helped him play blindfold games.

ADVICE

Use Immediate Feedback for Learning

Practice chess with immediate feedback to quickly learn from mistakes and reinforce patterns.
This helps develop intuition and move quality sensing, improving overall play.

INSIGHT

Losing Rating Is Positive

Losing rating points is not a failure but a necessary learning reset that helps you grow.
Embrace rating drops as opportunities to prove progress against easier opponents and refine skills.

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This week’s guest is Samuel Sonning, a Swedish computer scientist, former Google engineer, and founder of NoctieAI—a user-friendly chess platform featuring rating tests and bots designed to play like humans. In our conversation, Samuel discusses his unique improvement philosophy as an adult learner, including how memorizing famous games helped him build intuition and visualization skills. A passionate player himself, many of Sam’s ideas have directly shaped NoctieAI, which offers immediate move feedback and personalized flashcards based on individual mistakes. We also explore the broader state of machine learning as it relates to chess. Samuel has been fascinated by this intersection since the days of Kasparov vs. Deep Blue, but while he still sees great potential in AI-assisted chess learning, he no longer views chess as the leading edge of AI development. This was a fascinating conversation, and I’m excited to follow NoctieAI’s continued evolution.

Thanks to our sponsor, Chessable.com! If you sign up for Chessable Pro in order to unlock discounts and additional features, be sure to use the following link:

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0:00- What has been Sam’s approach to chess improvement?

Mentioned: EP 383 with Dan Bock

08:00- Why did Sam decide to develop Noctie such that it gives immediate feedback on your moves, rather than after your games?

12:00- When did Sam start playing tournament chess?

15:00- Why did Sam choose memorizing master games as a favorit- approach to chess improvement?

19:00- How to overcome rating anxiety

Mentioned: Sam’s Blog post-

https://noctie.ai/chess/how-not-to-get-better-at-chess/

24:00- Why does NoctieAI offer both rating level tests and non-numeric titles such as “Knight 3?”

27:00- What does Sam do to make NoctieAI play in a more human-like fashion?

31:00- Patreon mailbag question: “What new paradigms could still be coming from chess engines?”

34:00- What sparked Samuel’s interest in computers and chess?

37:00- Should chess still be considered an effective testing ground for AI development writ large, or has broader AI development caught up with the chess world?

40:00- Why is ChatGPT terrible at games like poker and chess?

Mentioned:

Nate Silver’s blog post:

https://www.natesilver.net/p/chatgpt-is-shockingly-bad-at-poker

Jen Shahade’s blog post:

https://jenshahade.substack.com/p/chatgpt-is-weirdly-bad-at-chess

47:00- How is the business of NoctieAI doing?

52:00- Sam’s favorite chess books and content creators

Mentioned: Jeremy Silman, Shereshevsky’s Endgame Strategy, ChessNetwork

Thanks to Samuel for joining us! The best way to reach him is via NoctieAI.

https://noctie.ai/

If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess via Patreon, you can do so here:

https://www.patreon.com/c/perpetualchess

Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (https://thepodcastconsultant.com).

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