EP 474- NM Han Schut on GM Jan Timman’s Legacy, Chess Improvement, & Using LLM’s to Create Helpful Chess Tools
From Perpetual Chess Podcast by Ben Johnson
March 3, 2026 · 1h 15m
About this episode
NM Han Schut discusses GM Jan Timman's legacy, chess improvement strategies, and the use of LLMs in creating chess tools.
This week’s returning guest is NM Han Schut. Han is a former corporate executive turned Chessable author and trainer, known for his expertise in the Chess Steps Method and chess technology. Han joins me to reflect on the legacy of his fellow Dutchman, GM Jan Timman, who recently passed away. He shares personal anecdotes and discusses Timman’s impact as a world-class competitor, prolific author, and cultural icon in the Netherlands. We also explore a fascinating recent project: Han built a custom chess database with the help of the LLM Claude, which handled all of the coding. He explains how players can use LLMs effectively for chess study and recommends other powerful digital tools. Finally, Han offers evergreen advice on rest, mindset, and accurately assessing your own chess performance. As always, I came away inspired by Han’s wide-ranging knowledge and practical approach to chess. Thanks to our sponsors, Chessable.com! Check out Han Schut's courses here: https://www.chessable.com/author/HanSchut/ 00:00 Remembering Grandmaster Jan Timman Mentioned: Read Peter Doggers’ obituary here: https://www.chess.com/news/view/jan-timman-obituary Timman-Ribli 1978…
People in this episode
Host: Ben Johnson
Guest: Han Schut
Topics covered
- chess improvement
- Jan Timman's legacy
- LLMs in chess
- chess technology
- mindset in chess
Keywords
- chess
- Jan Timman
- Han Schut
- LLM
- Chessable
- chess technology
- chess database
- mindset
- performance assessment
Sponsors
Chessable
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Claude, Lichess, Chess.com
Books & works: Peter Doggers’ obituary
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