Oxford lecture: why the AI era makes studying maths and philosophy urgent — and exciting
raphaelmilliere · x · 2026-10-17
Oxford researcher Raphael Millière gave the annual Welcome Lecture for new maths & philosophy students on what happens inside language models, focusing on mechanistic interpretability. Key threads: peer review, assessment and credit assignment are nearing breaking point as AI advances in maths; a PhD student recently asked him whether to drop out (he advised against it); yet there has never been a better time to be a philosopher, both for new career paths and for shaping the AI transition. He cites Terry Tao's "Maths 2.0" optimism, with the caveat that this only holds if education, mentorship and understanding are actively upheld and institutions adapt.
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