There’s a C++ API available for Starcraft BroodWar, which allows you to interact with the game using a program

And there’s a competition on to create a Starcraft AI that compete with one another (and humans)!!

I read about this on Slashdot, where the monkeys are usually extra amusing.  And they didn’t disappoing.  The first three comments that I read rocked.

1) What could possibly go wrong? Let’s teach our AI systems how to do battle… against humans. Skynet anyone?

2) at one point the AI will realize that it’s far easier to beat the human by hacking in to military computers and nuking the player.

3) Then the human players will black out the sky

Huge grin on my face when I read that one.