OpenAI claims it solved an 80-year-old math problem — for real this time
Quick Answer
OpenAI claims its new reasoning model has autonomously disproved an 80-year-old geometric conjecture by Paul Erdős, marking a significant advancement in AI's capability to solve complex mathematical problems.
Quick Take
This proof, supported by mathematicians, suggests AI can connect ideas across various fields, potentially impacting biology, physics, and medicine.
Key Points
- OpenAI's model disproved a conjecture posed by Paul Erdős in 1946.
- This is the first time AI has autonomously solved a prominent open mathematical problem.
- The proof was supported by mathematicians, enhancing its credibility.
- AI's capability to connect ideas may impact various scientific fields.
- OpenAI's achievement contrasts with previous claims of solving Erdős problems.
📖 Reader Mode
~2 min readOpenAI claims its new reasoning model has produced an original mathematical proof disproving a famous unsolved conjecture in geometry, which was first posed by Paul Erdős in 1946.
If this sounds familiar to you, it’s because this isn’t the first time OpenAI has made such a bold claim. Seven months ago, the AI giant’s former VP Kevil Weil posted on X: “GPT-5 found solutions to 10 (!) previously unsolved Erdős problems and made progress on 11 others.”
It turns out, GPT-5 didn’t actually solve those problems; it just found existing solutions that already existed in the literature.
Taunts from rivals like Yann LeCun and Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis followed, and Weil promptly took down his premature post. Today, at least, it seems OpenAI didn’t make the same mistake twice. Alongside the announcement, OpenAI published companion remarks in support of the disproof from mathematicians like Noga Alon, Melanie Wood, and Thomas Bloom, who maintains the Erdos Problems website, and previously called Weil’s post “a dramatic misrepresentation.”
“For nearly 80 years, mathematicians believed the best possible solutions looked roughly like square grids,” OpenAI posted on X. “An OpenAI model has now disproved that belief, discovering an entirely new family of constructions that performs better.”
The company said this marks “the first time AI has autonomously solved a prominent open problem central to a field of mathematics.” The proof, per OpenAI, came from a new general-purpose reasoning model, not a system specifically designed to solve math problems or even this problem in particular.
OpenAI says this is significant because it means AI systems are now more capable of holding together long, difficult chains of reasoning and connecting ideas across fields in ways researchers may not have previously explored. That has implications for biology, physics, engineering, and medicine.
“AI is helping us to more fully explore the cathedral of mathematics we have built over the centuries,” Bloom said in a statement. “What other unseen wonders are waiting in the wings?”
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Rebecca Bellan is a senior reporter at TechCrunch where she covers the business, policy, and emerging trends shaping artificial intelligence. Her work has also appeared in Forbes, Bloomberg, The Atlantic, The Daily Beast, and other publications.
You can contact or verify outreach from Rebecca by emailing rebecca.bellan@techcrunch.com or via encrypted message at rebeccabellan.491 on Signal.
— Originally published at techcrunch.com
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