The chimpanzee who beat humans at this game
In 2007, Sana Inoue and Tetsuro Matsuzawa of Kyoto University reported that young chimpanzees could remember numbers on a touchscreen better than adult humans. Their star was Ayumu, the son of Ai, a chimpanzee famous for learning to label quantities with numerals.
In their toughest version, five numerals from 1 to 9 flashed on the screen for just 210 milliseconds, about the length of a single eye movement, before turning into white squares. Ayumu still touched the squares in the right order about 79% of the time. Nine university students averaged about 38%. In the authors’ words, Ayumu “outperformed all of the human subjects both in speed and accuracy.”
So are chimps better at memory than people?
Not necessarily. Ayumu had practiced the task for many sessions, while the students saw it for the first time. In 2009, psychologists Silberberg and Kearns gave two people practice on the same task, and their accuracy matched Ayumu’s. Ayumu was also the best of the six chimpanzees tested. The fairest conclusion: with training, chimps can be remarkably good at this kind of snapshot memory, and so can we.
What your score means
| Mode | Score | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Classic | 5 numbers or fewer | Warming up |
| Classic | 6–8 numbers | Typical |
| Classic | 9–11 numbers | Strong |
| Classic | 12 or more | Exceptional |
| Ayumu mode | About 4 in 10 | Like the students’ first try |
| Ayumu mode | 8 in 10 or better | Ayumu level |
The classic bands are a rough guide from how the game scales. The Ayumu figures come from the 2007 study.
What the chimp test measures
It tests spatial working memory: holding several locations in mind at once, and in the right order. Unlike the number memory test, you can’t repeat anything to yourself. You have to keep a mental snapshot of the grid.
Tips for a higher score
- Don’t read the numbers one by one. Take in the whole grid as a picture first.
- Notice clusters: “2 and 3 are top left, 4 is alone at the bottom.”
- In Ayumu mode, keep your eyes still in the middle of the grid. There is no time to look around.
- Play a few rounds. Practice is exactly what closed the gap with Ayumu.
Chimp test FAQ
What is a good chimp test score?
There is no official norm for the classic mode. As a rough guide, 6 to 8 numbers is typical and 9 or more is strong. In Ayumu mode, getting half the trials right beats the average first attempt of the university students in the original study.
Why is it called the chimp test?
It copies a task from Kyoto University, where a young chimpanzee named Ayumu remembered the positions of briefly flashed numbers better than human volunteers did.
Can humans beat Ayumu?
Yes, with practice. Ayumu had trained on the task for many sessions, while the students were tested cold. When two people practiced the same task, they matched his accuracy.
Is the chimp test related to IQ?
It measures spatial working memory, one ingredient of reasoning, but not intelligence as a whole. A score on one memory game says little about your overall IQ.
Sources
- Inoue, S., & Matsuzawa, T. (2007). Working memory of numerals in chimpanzees. Current Biology, 17(23), R1004–R1005.
- Silberberg, A., & Kearns, D. (2009). Memory for the order of briefly presented numerals in humans as a function of practice. Animal Cognition.
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Take the free IQ testBy the MyIQTest team · Reviewed November 2026