OpenAI claims it solved an 80-year-old math problem — for real this time
OpenAI has announced that its new reasoning model has produced a mathematical proof that disproves a well-known conjecture posed by Paul Erdős in 1946. This claim follows a previous controversial assertion by OpenAI regarding solving Erdős problems, which was later retracted. The company emphasizes that this achievement demonstrates AI's growing capability to tackle complex reasoning tasks across various fields of study.
- ▪OpenAI claims to have solved an 80-year-old math problem by disproving a famous conjecture in geometry.
- ▪This announcement comes after a previous claim by OpenAI that was criticized for misrepresenting existing solutions.
- ▪The new proof was generated by a general-purpose reasoning model, showcasing AI's ability to connect ideas across different disciplines.
6 outlets in our directory ran this story, first to last over 21 hours. Coverage spans 2 points on the political spectrum — 1 lean left, 4 centre.
- ▪ OpenAI makes breakthrough on 80-year-old maths problem — the Guardian
- ▪ OpenAI makes breakthrough on 80-year-old maths problem - The Guardian — Google News
- ▪ OpenAl claims Al breakthrough, says its model solved 80-year-old math problem — r/artificial
- ▪ General-purpose AI model reportedly solves major open problem in mathematics — Crypto Briefing
- ▪ OpenAI general purpose model had a breakthrough on famous 80 year old Erdos problem. “This marks the first time AI has autonomously solved a prominent open problem central to a field of mathematics” — r/singularity
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| Original publisher | TechCrunch |
| Canonical URL | https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/20/openai-claims-it-solved-an-80-year-old-math-problem-for-real-this-time/ |
| Publication time | Wed, 20 May 2026 20:28:27 +0000 |
| Retrieval time | 2026-05-20T20:30:03.331Z |
| Last seen | 2026-05-20T20:30:03.331Z |
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| Cluster | cfeEAPrbCjqu · 7 stories |
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Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
OpenAI claims its new reasoning model has produced an original mathematical proof disproving a famous unsolved conjecture in geometry, which was first posed by Paul Erdős in 1946. If this sounds familiar to you, it’s because this isn’t the first time OpenAI has made such a bold claim. Seven months ago, the AI giant’s former VP Kevil Weil posted on X: “GPT-5 found solutions to 10 (!) previously unsolved Erdős problems and made progress on 11 others.” It turns out, GPT-5 didn’t actually solve those problems; it just found existing solutions that already existed in the literature. Taunts from rivals like Yann LeCun and Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis followed, and Weil promptly took down his premature post. Today, at least, it seems OpenAI didn’t make the same mistake twice.
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