Mathematicians question OpenAI's Navier-Stokes proof
What happened
In early September 2026, OpenAI published a 166-page potential solution to the Navier-Stokes problem. On 17 October, The Decoder reported that several mathematicians have questioned the proof. EPFL mathematician Gonzalo Cao-Labora said OpenAI's method is only superficially similar to that of Spanish mathematicians Diego Córdoba and Luis Martínez-Zoroa, and follows a different path in its details, adding that OpenAI does not understand its own proof. The dispute currently centres on the originality and understanding of the proof method, with no further conclusion yet.
Written by AI from the reports · updated 3 h ago
Timeline
Follow the reports to see the event from each side.
- The DecoderMathematicians say OpenAI doesn't understand its own Navier-Stokes proof
OpenAI submitted a 166-page solution to the Navier-Stokes problem but apparently doesn't fully understand its own proof. Several groups of experts dispute the claimed methodology, saying the actual approach differs from what OpenAI described. And because language models are black boxes, where the underlying ideas came from will likely never be clear.
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