posted by Smyke,

Now, before you start popping off, we know it is likely a *massive* reach to say that this was the same OpenAI team that lost both games at The International 2018, or took part in a memorable 1v1 versus none other than former Natus Vincere star Danil 'Dendi' Ishutin.
The name fits, the logo fits, but something smells fishy. For one, the name on the page of tournament organiser Varena is spelled ‘OpenAi’, not ‘OpenAI’. A minor difference, but likely a crucial one.
Given the open nature of the qualifier, this is more likely to have just been a group of players trolling in their choice of name — after all, among the big names such as Royal Never Give Up, Newbee and Invictus Gaming was a “Team Pikachu” and a side whose logo was a photo of a pig in some kind of cage — but we can totally dare to imagine that USB stick taking on China again, right?
In the Open Qualifier #1, the “OpenAI” team first came up against a team with a name that supposedly translates as “Five Melon Warriors Carefully Selected in the Guapi Kingdom.” They took the victory in that match, meaning they then faced off against Team Aster — the new superstar roster from BoBoKa, Fenrir, Sylar, Xxs and Dstones — and promptly lost.
So, it’s likely we won’t see “OpenAI” make it to Kuala Lumpur as one of China’s representatives, but whoever they are, they do have a second shot at making the next stage as they face Team Root in Open Qualifier #2.
Meanwhile, why not revisit that Dendi match once again? /s
Do you think OpenAI could one day play in a Major tournament?
Header image © OpenAI (via YouTube)
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