Well, I wouldn't usually call the thing a chess computer or a self-driving car is minimizing “suffering” (though I could if I feel like using more anthropomorphizing language than usual). But I'm confused by this, because I have no problem using that word to refer to a sensation felt by a chimp, a dog, or even an insect, and I'm not sure what is that an insect has and a chess computer hasn't that causes this intuition of mine. Maybe the fact that we share a common ancestor, and our nociception capabilities are synapomorphic with each other... but then I think even non-evolutionists would agree a dog can suffer, so it must be something else.