Terence Tao slams AI math as 'strip mining' — the problem isn't proof correctness
rohanpaul_ai · x · 2026-11-01
Terence Tao criticizes how AI is doing math — not because the proofs are wrong, but because of how problems are being solved.
On Navier-Stokes: activity around it is now "in disarray." It will recover and the proof will eventually be understood, but "the way it was done was very suboptimal." Tao distinguishes a responsible way of solving problems that develops a field from an emerging irresponsible one — "automated strip mining" that achieves the immediate goal at the field's expense. Mathematicians wanted a calculator, not a competitor.
Related event: Terence Tao slams AI math as "strip mining" that disrupts fields(4 posts)→
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