Prominent Chinese mathematicians launched a coalition to incorporate artificial intelligence (AI) in..

Prominent Chinese mathematicians launched a coalition to incorporate artificial intelligence (AI) into mathematical research on the 11th.

According to Hong Kong's South China Morning Post (SCMP), the "Yau Math and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory Alliance" aims to bring eight major institutions together to build a network of more than 1,000 scientists. The main goal of the activities is to develop an AI model dedicated to mathematics, to generate mathematical speculations and to formulate proofs using AI technology, and to build a system that can more easily interpret the reasoning process.

Fields Medal winner Yau Xingtung, director of the Yau Mathematical Science Center at Tsinghua University, who leads the coalition, warned that China is lagging behind the United States in using AI for advanced scientific development.

"The development of artificial intelligence in mathematics is like a tsunami," Yau said, arguing that Chinese mathematicians should respond systematically rather than avoiding AI.

The coalition comes amid growing debate over AI's ability to solve advanced math problems.

Last week, OpenAI published 722 mathematical papers categorized into 372 outcomes, claiming that progress had been made in hundreds of outstanding problems. However, OpenAI canceled the argument the next day and withdrew three papers and corrected 14 after finding errors affecting two related papers.

Some mathematicians have criticized the speed and scale of such paper releases, pointing out that mathematical results require careful verification, clear explanation, and proper recognition of prior research.

Terence Tao, another Fields Medal winner, called for slowing the pace of AI adoption, citing concerns about its negative impact, which has sparked debate with other mathematicians who support using the technology.

When asked about the issue, Yau emphasized that such debates should not prevent mathematicians from working with AI, but rather that close cooperation between top-notch mathematicians and AI developers is needed.

He pointed out that the gap between China and the United States is clear in cutting-edge scientific research, especially in the field of AI systems that can develop mathematics and physics. China's AI models are performing well in performing tasks for general users, but they are far behind the leading U.S. systems in cutting-edge research.

According to Yau, major U.S. AI companies are mobilizing thousands of scholars and huge industrial capital to solve difficult scientific problems, and mathematicians are using AI systems to explore new questions while also contributing to improving the system itself.

"The United States and the West are bringing together top math experts to work with AI and explore cutting-edge problems, while China's efforts are fragmented," he noted.

The union's launch ceremony was attended by Xiannanhua, president of the Chinese Mathematical Society, He Xuhua, vice president of the International Mathematical Federation, and Tianye, vice president of the Morningside Mathematics Center at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

In addition to the Yau Research Center and the Morningside Mathematics Center, the Tsinghua University Chiujeon University, the Beijing Mathematics and Science Application Institute, the Shanghai Mathematical Convergence Science Institute, the Yau Center of Dongnam University, the Hetao Mathematics Convergence Science Institute, and the Hong Kong Chinese University Zhen Convergence Mathematics College will participate in the alliance.