Which historical automation hoax involved a concealed human operating a chess-playing machine?

• A. Mechanical Turk 1770
• B. Vibe coding
• C. Tesla Bot 2021 demo
• D. Wizard of Oz testing

Answer: (A)

The idea being tested is that of a convincing automation illusion—something that acts like a thinking machine while a real person is hidden inside making the moves. The classic example is the Mechanical Turk, introduced in 1770. It looked like a life-sized automaton that could play chess against a human, traveling and performing as if it truly had machine intelligence. In reality, a concealed human operator controlled the chess moves, creating the impression that a machine was thinking for itself. This hoax fooled many educated spectators of the time and helped spark early debates about machine intelligence and what counts as “thinking.” The other choices don’t fit this scenario: a modern robot demo isn’t about a concealed operator, a testing method named Wizard of Oz describes deception in experiments rather than a touring chess automaton, and the remaining option isn’t related to a chess-playing machine.