A big name in profession poker has just come out saying that he approves of poker bots being allowed at online poker tables. With a caveat, of course. But first, the poker pro: it is Barry Greenstein, the world-renowned philanthropist of poker who gives away his winnings to charity.

Now the caveat: What Barry Greenstein suggests is that poker sites have specific poker tables (and possibly tournaments too) that are labeled as poker bot friendly sites. Who knows? Maybe this will attract a whole niche of player who enjoy pitting their wits against a machine. Lots of people wanted to test their mettle against the Deep Blue chess laying program.

And it’s likely to bring out a whole breed of poker bot developers wishing to pit their programs against others made by other developers. At the very least, these would be fun to watch.

Poker bots, for those who don’t know. are programs designed to play poker equal or superior to that of human players. Results have so far been mixed. Which is probably why Barry Greenstein doesn’t see much of a threat in permitting them seats at the felt.