GoChess, AI and Innovation

This week, Mr Lang met with the team behind GoCube, GoDice, GoBalance and GoChess to explore new opportunities created by emerging AI technologies. These discussions are part of our ongoing work to ensure that children at Caterham Prep are not just users of technology, but active contributors to how it is developed and used. 

A key focus of the meeting was their innovative GoChess platform (a smart chessboard that can coach strategies as you play on the physical board) and how it might be taken beyond its original purpose. The idea began with Innovation Pioneers, some of whom last year suggested using the board’s integrated lights and sensors to create and play entirely new types of games. At the time, the technology was not quite ready to support this, although the company loved the idea. However, recent developments in AI and ‘vibe coding’ have opened up new possibilities, so they got back in touch to reopen the conversation. 

We are now working with the team to explore the potential for a platform where a game can be described and then appear on the board almost instantly, with the AI acting as a ‘coding partner’ to bridge between the idea, the software and the hardware. Caterham Prep is hoping to be the first school in the world to trial this approach, helping to shape how this technology develops for leisure and educational use. 

This work also connects with our new lunchtime Chess Academy, led by Mr Snow, which brings together keen players from both Prep and the senior school for competitive games and shared learning, who put the board through its paces this week, taking on the champions in a head-to head. It has also made appearances at our after-school Chess clubs and is a steady fixture in our Innovation Pioneers clubs, all of whom bring different skill levels and ideas to the table. It is an exciting moment where one of the world’s oldest games meets the newest technology and most creative minds. 

We look forward to sharing more as this project hopefully develops further and as our pupils continue to lead the way in exploring how innovation and tradition can come together in new and creative ways.