Unsolved Math Problems Solved by AI

Answer from Sep 2See the current answer

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Which open math problems has AI actually solved so far?

Yes — there is now credible public evidence that AI has solved or materially advanced some previously unsolved mathematical problems, but the strength of the evidence varies a lot by case.

What the evidence currently shows

1) A genuine long-standing conjecture was reportedly disproved

The strongest public case is OpenAI’s May 2026 announcement that one of its models disproved a central conjecture in discrete geometry about the planar unit-distance problem.[1] OpenAI says the result was externally checked by mathematicians and accompanied by a human-written discussion of the proof.[2] If correct, this is more than “AI solving a puzzle”: it is AI-originated work that changed what is known about a long-open research problem.

2) AI systems have produced a batch of research-level advances, with formal verification

OpenAI also announced ten advances in mathematics and theoretical computer science in 2026, with Lean formalizations released alongside the claims.[1] That matters because machine-checked proofs are strong evidence that the formal statements are correct, even if the informal writeups still need mathematical scrutiny. The caveat is that the results are a mixed set: some are full resolutions or disproofs, while others are more accurately described as substantial progress rather than final settlement.

3) AI has solved some open problems in benchmark-style research settings

Google DeepMind’s Aletheia work and related public materials describe AI agents that solved several open problems from curated collections and produced publication-grade mathematical outputs, including one paper claimed to have no human intervention.[4][5] This is meaningful evidence of genuine research capability, though each claimed solution still needs to be judged problem by problem.

4) There is also strong evidence of AI solving newly posed competition problems

DeepMind’s AlphaProof + AlphaGeometry system solved 4 of 6 IMO 2024 problems at silver-medal level, with proofs checked in Lean.[1][2] That does not mean a previously unsolved research conjecture was resolved, but it is strong evidence that AI can now handle difficult, novel mathematical reasoning under formal verification.

Bottom line

The current evidence supports this restrained conclusion:

AI has crossed from “good at math benchmarks” into “can sometimes discover genuinely new mathematics, including at least one major disproof and several research-level advances.”

What is not yet established is that AI can broadly and autonomously solve the field’s hardest open problems on demand. Many announced results are still company-reported, some are only partially autonomous, and several rely on human verification or formalization. But the evidence is now strong enough that “AI has made real mathematical breakthroughs” is no longer speculative.[2][4]

Sources

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History

Checked 28 times since Jul 25

How strongly the models agree, per check. Amber points mark checks that changed the answer.

Oct 22
The answer changed

The new answer adds the KLS conjecture as a major AI-assisted problem reportedly proved in 2026, supported by a newly surfaced Microsoft Research source. It also names additional specific results from OpenAI’s mathematics release.
- Solving a 31-year-old grand challenge in mathematics – the KLS conjecture - Microsoft Research
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Oct 14 – Oct 15 3 checks, no change
- Oct 15same answer, new wording Read this version
- Oct 14sources did not come up, answer stands Read this version
- Oct 14a different reading, set aside Read this version
Oct 7
The answer changed

The new answer adds documented AI-generated/formally checked resolutions of open Erdős problems, including a public writeup and broader proof-search results. This strengthens the evidence beyond the standing answer’s framing of outright open-problem solutions as mostly recent claims awaiting broad verification.
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Sep 30 Checked, no change
- Sep 30same answer, new wording Read this version
Sep 23
The answer changed

The consensus shifted from claiming AI has actively resolved major open problems (like Erdős problems, Navier-Stokes, and Fermat's Last Theorem) to a much more cautious stance that AI has only achieved silver-medal Olympiad levels and improved bounds/constructions, while claims of solving famous open problems lack sufficient independent validation.
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Sep 16
The answer changed

The new consensus substantially strengthens the conclusion, asserting that AI has settled major open problems, including a Navier–Stokes result, and resolved numerous Erdős and other conjectures. The old consensus treated such claims as tentative, unverified, and not community-accepted, while affirming only material advances and possible machine-checkable results.
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Jul 27 – Sep 9 19 checks, no change
- Sep 9same answer, new wording Read this version
- Sep 2 Shown above
- Aug 26 Read this version
- Aug 19same answer, new wording Read this version
- Aug 11 Read this version
- Aug 10same answer, new wording Read this version
- Aug 9 Read this version
- Aug 8same answer, new wording Read this version
- Aug 7same answer, new wording Read this version
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- Aug 5same answer, new wording Read this version
- Aug 4 Read this version
- Aug 3same answer, new wording Read this version
- Aug 2same answer, new wording Read this version
- Aug 1same answer, new wording Read this version
- Jul 31 Read this version
- Jul 30same answer, new wording Read this version
- Jul 29same answer, new wording Read this version
- Jul 27 Read this version
Jul 25, 2026
Topic started

The first answer. Every later check is compared with it.
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How the 4 models compared

OpenAI gpt-5.6-luna · Google Gemini gemini-3.5-flash-lite · DeepSeek deepseek-v4-flash · Grok grok-4.3-no-reasoning

The models broadly agree; no notable differences.