Aimchess review: scores and evidence

A1 :2Importing your games (Chess.com, Lichess, PGN files)

https://aimchess.com#pricing: “Track multiple accounts across Chess.com/Lichess/Chess24”; no PGN import mentioned.

A2 :2Automatic engine analysis of every game

https://aimchess.com: “we analyze every move from your recent games”; engine and depth not published; free tier = one 40-game report per month.

A3 :2Recurring mistakes identified across all your games

https://aimchess.com: “behind on the clock for 78% of your moves”, “list of mistakes and blown positions” on recent games; no ranking by engine cost

A4 :3Types of mistakes covered (tactics, strategy, endgame, time…)

https://aimchess.com: six published areas: Tactics, Endgame, Advantage capitalization, Resourcefulness, Time management, Opening performance (endgame and time included)

A5 :1Written explanation of each mistake

https://aimchess.com: “Retry Mistakes” and a blunder label; no sample of explanatory text for a given mistake

A6 :0Stated verification of the diagnoses (procedure, rates)

https://aimchess.com: no mention of diagnostic reliability (the UBC study covers the lessons, not the diagnosis).

A7 :1Tracking each weakness over time

https://aimchess.com#pricing: “My statistics page” (Premium) listed with no documented content; no weakness trend shown.

A8 :3Comparison with players of the same rating

https://aimchess.com: “we compare you to others with the same rating” on each of the six areas.

B1 :0Building a personal repertoire

https://aimchess.com: no opening repertoire; only “Opening Improver” (positions the player got wrong).

B2 :0Training the repertoire (drills, games)

https://aimchess.com: no repertoire drilling.

B3 :1Spotting where you left your repertoire in your games

https://aimchess.com: “Opening performance” = opening result statistics; no repertoire, therefore no deviation detection.

B4 :0Verification of the lines taught (engine, practice)

https://aimchess.com: no mention of line verification.

B5 :0Opening explorer and statistics

https://aimchess.com: no explorer.

B6 :0Explanation of opening plans and ideas

https://aimchess.com: no opening teaching (plans, traps) mentioned.

C1 :2Exercises drawn from your own games

https://aimchess.com: “personalized puzzles built from your mistakes”, Retry Mistakes, Opening Improver, Advantage Capitalization Trainer; no success rate per weakness.

C2 :1Bank of tactical exercises (size, themes, rating)

https://aimchess.com: “Tactics — a classic tactics puzzle”; no puzzle count published.

C3 :2Endgame training

https://aimchess.com: “Endgame” lesson + Advantage Capitalization Trainer (lost games replayed against the computer); no tablebases.

C4 :0Strategic and positional training

https://aimchess.com: no positional or strategic exercise among the lessons listed

C5 :2Training defense and alertness

https://aimchess.com: “Defender” and “Blunder Preventer”; no difficulty rating per sub-type demonstrated

C6 :2Training calculation and visualization

https://aimchess.com: “Practice Visualization” and “Blindfold Tactics”; no level-based programme.

C7 :1Difficulty matched to your real level

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/aimchess/id1524941307: “Adaptive Tactics” with no documented algorithm or rating.

C8 :1Spaced repetition (named algorithm)

https://aimchess.com: “Retry Mistakes” is manual; no spaced repetition mentioned

C9 :2Personalized training plan

https://aimchess.com: “Weekly personalized study plan” + “One daily training session”; adjustable time budget and explicit priorities not demonstrated

D1 :2What the free plan actually lets you do

https://aimchess.com#pricing Standard Free: one 40-game report per month, weekly plan, one daily session, “Unlimited studies”.

D2 :2Annual price of the full plan

https://aimchess.com#pricing: $57.99 per year = €53.35 (€31-75 band).

D3 :1Commercial transparency (price shown, trial, cancellation)

https://aimchess.com: price displayed, “cancel anytime”; terms.pdf (01/06/2020): “will not be refunded”; no Premium trial.

D4 :3Number of paid tiers (how simple the offer is)

https://aimchess.com: a single paid tier, Premium ($7.99/month, $57.99/year), alongside the free plan

E1 :1Published evidence of effectiveness

https://aimchess.com: “31% faster … 12 week randomized field experiment … University of British Columbia” — neither sample size nor linked publication.

E2 :0Chess verification of the content (positions, lines)

https://aimchess.com: no information on how content is checked.

E3 :1Transparency of the method (algorithms, code)

https://aimchess.com FAQ: “cutting-edge technology”, “high-depth engine”, “2x deeper analysis” — nothing actually named.

E4 :2Marketing claims that can be checked (no overselling)

https://aimchess.com: factual tone, the only figure (31%) is attributed to a study; limitations not stated.

F1 :1Courses organized by rating level

https://aimchess.com: 13 lessons and trainers with no rating band indicated.

F2 :0Course authors named and titled

https://aimchess.com: “a team of grandmasters and coaches”, unnamed (GM Ankit Rajpara appears as a testimonial, not as an author).

F3 :1Content formats (text, video, interactive)

https://aimchess.com: interactive exercises only; no course text and no video.

F4 :1Published method of progression

https://aimchess.com: weekly plan derived from the diagnosis, but no published curriculum with milestones.

F5 :0How often the content is updated

https://play.google.com com.aimchess “Updated on Jul 2, 2024”; App Store 1.3.1 dated 28/06/2024; © 2021; no update in the past 12 months.

G1 :0Playing humans online (pool, anti-cheating)

https://aimchess.com: no online play against humans.

G2 :1Realistic artificial opponents

https://aimchess.com: “win them against computer” (Advantage Capitalization Trainer); levels not documented.

G3 :2Replaying one specific position against the machine

https://aimchess.com: “games you lost while having big advantage … against computer” — positions from the player’s own games, opponent strength not calibrated.

G4 :0Tournaments and organized competition

https://aimchess.com: no tournaments.

H1 :3Platforms available (web, iOS, Android, desktop)

https://aimchess.com (web) + https://apps.apple.com id1524941307 + https://play.google.com com.aimchess.

H2 :1User ratings and reviews (stores, press)

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id1524941307: 3.9/5 (196 ratings); https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.aimchess: 3.4/5 (1.08K reviews) — one store below 3.5.

H3 :0Interface languages available

https://aimchess.com — English only; App Store Aimchess (id1524941307): EN only

H4 :0Accessibility (keyboard, screen reader)

https://aimchess.com: no accessibility statement.

H5 :1Offline use and known incidents

https://aimchess.com/coaches: “You need to enable JavaScript” — everything depends on the server; no reported incident found.

I1 :0Preparing for a named opponent

https://aimchess.com: no opponent preparation among the 13 lessons and the tiers listed

I2 :0Annotating and sharing games (studies)

https://aimchess.com: “Unlimited studies” listed with no description; no annotation and no game sharing demonstrated

I3 :0Entering a game played at a club (photo, scoresheet)

https://aimchess.com: no manual game entry; import only through Chess.com/Lichess/Chess24 accounts

I4 :1Searching your games (filters, position)

https://aimchess.com: “Analysis of your last 1000 online games”, list of recent games and mistakes; no filter demonstrated

J1 :0Access to human coaches

https://aimchess.com: no coach reachable (the “For coaches” page is a tool for coaches, unreadable without JS).

J2 :0Size and activity of the community

https://aimchess.com: Twitter/Facebook/Instagram links only; no forum and no Discord.

J3 :2Tools for trainers, clubs and schools

https://aimchess.com: “Share data & lessons with your coach”; GM Rajpara: “list of mistakes … from a student’s recent games”.

J4 :2Engagement mechanics (streaks, virtual currency, reminders)

https://aimchess.com + App Store: no virtual currency, no streak and no leaderboard; no visible re-engagement prompt.

K1 :0Exporting your data (games, repertoire)

https://aimchess.com/static/terms.pdf and privacy_policy.pdf: no export feature mentioned.

K2 :1Protection of personal data (GDPR, hosting)

https://aimchess.com/static/privacy_policy.pdf: privacy_policy.pdf (27/01/2022): company incorporated under Norwegian law, Google Analytics + Facebook, transfers outside the EU/EEA; App Store “Data Used to Track You”.

K3 :0Public API and source code

https://aimchess.com: no public API and no public code; https://github.com/aimchess returns 404.