Deep Blue Earns Celebrity Rating

Aug. 28 -- Wanted: One talent manager for a supercomputer known for its cold and calculating personality.

IBM’s Deep Blue is already a television veteran, having appeared on an episode of FOX TV’s cartoon Futurama. Now the popularity of the computer, known as the fastest in the world, is reaching new heights ranking it up with celebrities including Howard Stern and Carmen Electra.

Deep Blue is the first technical device to receive a Q rating, an indicator of public opinion used by advertisers to gauge celebrity star power. The computer scored a 9, the same rating given to Electra, and just slightly behind MTV host Carson Daly and rap singer LL Cool J who each rank as an 11.

The computer is probably best known for defeating chess champ Garry Kasparov, and IBM’s V.P. of Deep Computing Dave Turek credits that match with building a reputation for the machine. “I think it turns out to make technology less threatening because it becomes more personalized, has a personality associated with it, ” says Turek.

Unlike the other individuals garnished with Q ratings, Deep Blue is not known for its bubbly or magnetic personality. Turek jokes that while the computer is rather cold and calculating, there are benefits to hiring the machine for events like TV appearances. “Just think: no more contract negotiations, no holdouts, no bad behavior, fewer tattoos.”

He admits Deep Blue was not plucked out of a batch of gadgets vying for a Q rating, since IBM did commission the study. Still, of the 1200 people polled, half said they were familiar with the computer.

Qualifications: Swim, Fly, Discover Oil

The areas where Deep Blue might lack in personality, it makes up for in skills.

“[It’s] not something you snuggle up against on a winter night, [although] it may find the oil or natural gas to [keep] your home warm on that night,” said Turek.

Ten thousand versions of these supercomputers are employed globally for tasks including executing stock trades, assisting military planes and analyzing surveillance data on oil company ships searching for new reserves.