Szepesvári: the value of math is growing human understanding, not just answers

CsabaSzepesvari · x · 2026-08-19

Renowned RL researcher Csaba Szepesvári weighs in: he dislikes tying AI companies' marketing needs to making models good at math (though one shouldn't be naive about it either). The important point, he argues, is that claims about AI surpassing humans rest on a lack of understanding that a big component of math's value is increasing human understanding of math. He warns that favoring short-term gains—something societies often do—could produce a dystopian future where humans get stuck or lose the ability to exercise self-governance.

Related event: arXiv paper footnote sparks debate over AI math ability and marketing(6 posts)→

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