Why mathematician Terence Tao thinks AI must spark a rapid revolution | New Scientist
This year has left mathematicians reeling as AI models are increasingly solving seemingly intractable maths problems. Terence Tao, the world's leading mathematician, says a rethink of the entire field is the only way out of the crisis
Terence Tao is calling for a rethink of what it means to be a mathematician David Esquivel/UCLA As the stewards of a body of work dating back thousands of years, mathematicians are rarely in a hurry. Problems can lie open for decades or even centuries before they are cracked, and individual mathematicians think nothing of spending years devoted to a single question. But now Terence Tao, arguably the world’s greatest living mathematician, says that he and his colleagues have mere months to react to a crisis driven by the rise of AI. He warns that, for the first time in more than a century,…
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