Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem

An AI model solved the Jacobian conjecture, an 87-year-old math problem, by disproving it — showing that certain mathematical "maps" can send multiple starting points to the same destination. This follows a string of recent AI breakthroughs in mathematics, sparking both excitement and anxiety among mathematicians. While AI delivers answers, it can't explain the reasoning behind them, and experts warn that knowing what questions to ask may be humanity's last mathematical advantage.