bahn.bet: You can bet on train delays with a satire project

Betting on train delays – that's possible on the bahn.bet website. The satirical betting site was launched by Viennese artist and content creator Caio van Caarven. Bets are not placed with real money, but with an imaginary currency. "But please pretend the money is real," he adds. However, the delay data is all real, van Caarven writes on the website.

The betting game is a social experiment. "Let's pretend that this platform is a real thing, and maybe Deutsche Bahn will actually do something" about the delays, van Caarven continues. In response to an inquiry from heise online, van Caarven also stated that Deutsche Bahn has not yet contacted him. He doesn't expect a reaction either.

The idea for the game came to him after numerous negative experiences with the railway, he told BR. The artist normally processes these in an animated series on Instagram and TikTok. Van Caarven also sells clothing, for example with the slogan "Schrödinger's Zug – Ist er pünktlich? Ist er zu spät? Man weiß nie" (Schrödinger's train – Is it punctual? Is it delayed? You'll never know). All of this is embedded in his fictional "DBSM" universe, he explains on the website. The betting game is just the latest addition to the universe, in which all train cancellations and delays are intentional and caused.

Great demand for the betting game

Upon registering on the website, new users receive a contingent of 1000 fictional euros. These can be used to bet on delays of European and German Intercity trains. Regional trains and S-Bahnen are not available on the website. If the money is used up, the digital wallet can be refilled by daily logins, completing tasks, or purchasing products from his online shop. The three people who have won the most money at the end of the month will receive products or vouchers for van Caarven's shop.

Within the first 24 hours, the website had already recorded über 150,000 Besuche (over 150,000 visits), the developer writes on his Instagram page. He has also already received several investment and purchase offers. He doesn't know yet whether he will pursue them in the future. However, in response to an inquiry from heise online, he writes that he plans to operate and further develop bahn.bet permanently.

Development not without AI

He invested 60 to 80 hours in the site in recent weeks, he writes to heise online, also with support from Claude. "AI has helped me enormously to implement things faster, but anyone who believes that you can simply build a finished product at the push of a button is mistaken," he emphasizes. AI has always been just a tool, but it cannot replace proper programming work.

(mho)