Yes, absolutely there are many HFT systems trying to game other HFT systems.  Some of them are using perfectly legal means and others are doing things that are less clearly legal.<p>&gt; Is this really the most efficient way to allocate resources...?<p>A - Yes as far as we can tell.  All the other options haven&#x27;t worked nearly as well.<p>B - Be very careful when assuming that the markets are about &quot;allocating resources&quot;.  That is a by-product of the markets.  Their main purpose is about risk management.