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AI Can't Replace Human Mathematicians, Says Fields Medalist

2/11/2026

Summary

Story summary

A high school student asked mathematician Martin Hairer whether artificial intelligence could render human mathematicians obsolete.
Hairer, a Fields Medal winner, reassured the student that mathematics remains "safe" from AI threats.
He noted that large-language models excel at solving artificial problems but have not yet generated genuinely new ideas.
Hairer is involved in an experiment to assess AI's mathematical abilities using genuine test questions from unpublished research.

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Story summary

A high school student asked mathematician Martin Hairer whether artificial intelligence could render human mathematicians obsolete.
Hairer, a Fields Medal winner, reassured the student that mathematics remains "safe" from AI threats.
He noted that large-language models excel at solving artificial problems but have not yet generated genuinely new ideas.
Hairer is involved in an experiment to assess AI's mathematical abilities using genuine test questions from unpublished research.