Chinese mathematicians unite to race for AI

Facing an "AI tsunami" and concerns about falling behind the US, 8 leading Chinese mathematics research institutions have joined forces to develop artificial intelligence.

The Shing-Tung Yau Mathematics and AI Laboratories Alliance was established on 11/10 on the initiative of mathematician Shing-Tung Yau (Khau Thanh Dong), the first ethnic Chinese to win a Fields Medal, according to SCMP.

8 leading institutions and universities are participating, including Tsinghua University, Peking University, and the Chinese University of Hong Kong. The alliance expects to connect over 1,000 scientists to develop specialized AI models for mathematics, from formulating hypotheses and standardizing proofs to building clearer reasoning systems.

"A year ago, I did not think AI would be this powerful. The development of AI in mathematics is like a tsunami," Mr. Yau shared. Witnessing AI solve many complex mathematical problems over the past year, he believes Chinese mathematicians need to actively engage rather than avoid it.

The legendary mathematician also noted that China still lags behind the US in advancing cutting-edge sciences through AI, according to Chosun Daily. While leading US AI companies have mobilized thousands of scholars and massive investment capital to tackle difficult problems, China's efforts remain fragmented.

"If Chinese AI models were asked to do the work OpenAI has accomplished in the past month, the gap would be significant," he said.

The alliance was formed amid growing debate over AI's ability to solve advanced mathematics. Last week, OpenAI published 722 drafts containing 372 mathematical results, claiming progress on hundreds of open problems. However, just one day later, the company had to retract three drafts due to errors found and revise 14 other drafts.

Many mathematicians criticized the speed and scale of these publications, arguing that mathematical results need careful verification, clear explanation, and proper acknowledgment of prior work. The Human Mathematics Association, with over 800 members, issued a statement of protest, stating that this approach would not actually advance mathematics and called for a boycott of OpenAI.

However, Mr. Yau holds a different view. The 1982 Fields Medal laureate believes this controversy should not hinder mathematicians from working with AI. Mathematicians can both help refine AI systems and use them to explore new mathematical problems.