The writer is a science commentator
When Yang-Hui He, a fellow at the London Institute for Mathematical Sciences, received an invitation to an all-expenses paid weekend held in Berkeley, California, last month, it was a no-brainer. The trip would afford the Oxford university lecturer, an expert in algebraic geometry and string theory, insider access to a potentially historic moment for his discipline.
Plus, the brief sounded fun: working with other top mathematicians to find out if the most advanced AI models, when confronted with brand new problems, could rival or exceed the collaborative reasoning abilities of the best human minds. The answer? The machines did better than expected. “I’m not saying we felt existentially threatened but there was a general feeling of awe,” He told me. He also flew back $1,500 richer after dreaming up a problem that stumped the AI.