{
  "id": 6726838,
  "title": "Mathematicians around the world are very angry with Sam Altman's OpenAI",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/mathematicians-around-the-world-are-very-angry-with-sam-altmans-openai",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-09-11T07:01:10.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Times of India",
    "slug": "times-of-india",
    "url": "https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/technology/tech-news/mathematicians-around-the-world-are-very-angry-with-sam-altmans-openai-making-the-company-leave-/articleshow/134051490.cms"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "OpenAI has terminated its sponsorship of a mathematics event organized by the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) following criticism from a group of current and former mathematicians. The dispute arises as AI companies, including OpenAI, increasingly leverage large language models (LLMs) to address complex research issues. OpenAI's decision follows an open letter from Caltech mathematicians, who expressed concerns that the event may have detrimental effects on the mathematical community.\n\nThe mathematicians' primary grievance is not merely the application of AI in mathematics but also how AI companies present their claimed breakthroughs and the subsequent verification process. They argue that AI companies often present their models as having solved difficult theoretical problems, leaving human mathematicians to verify the work, develop proofs, and ascertain the validity of these claims. This practice, dubbed \"sloppy mathematics,\" results in research mathematicians having to step in to properly review, disseminate, and sometimes debunk the claimed results, a task that goes unchecked, uncredited, and unacknowledged.\n\nThe tension escalated further after OpenAI claimed its AI agents had solved the Navier-Stokes equations, a set of mathematical equations studied for nearly 90 years to describe the movement of liquids and gases. This announcement drew significant criticism from mathematicians. In response to the backlash, OpenAI's research lead, Dan Roberts, acknowledged the disruptive impact of AI advancements in mathematics and expressed the company's intention to collaborate with the math community to determine the appropriate integration of this technology and its communication of implications. The Caltech Math Hackathon, the event in question, aims to provide young mathematicians with an opportunity to utilize AI tools while tackling challenging research questions. Participants compete in a 40-hour round, using $20,000 in AI tokens to address open mathematical problems. Successful teams can advance to a second round, receiving six months and additional AI tokens to continue their research.",
  "summary": "OpenAI has pulled its backing for a mathematics event at Caltech after facing backlash from mathematicians. They voiced worries about AI's impact on research integrity and the tendency of AI firms to announce discoveries without validation. Concerns were raised about the unpaid work required to verify results produced by AI systems. OpenAI recognized the transformative, yet disruptive, influence…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 9,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Business Insider",
        "title": "Sam Altman met with top power utilities about securing the electrical grid. He offered one possible solution: OpenAI's cyber services.",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/10/sam-altman-met-with-top-power-utilities-about-securing-the-electrical",
        "published": "2026-09-10T20:58:57.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Tech in Asia",
        "title": "OpenAI launches ChatGPT for financial services",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/openai-launches-chatgpt-for-financial-services",
        "published": "2026-09-11T00:21:35.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Techmeme",
        "title": "Sources: Sam Altman told OpenAI employees that the company is considering slowing cutting-edge AI development, and he hopes other AI companies will do the same (Bloomberg)",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/sources-sam-altman-told-openai-employees-that-the-company-is",
        "published": "2026-09-11T01:30:01.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Business Times - Companies & Markets",
        "title": "‘Gambling with our lives’: OpenAI open to slowing cutting-edge AI, CEO Sam Altman tells staff",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/gambling-with-our-lives-openai-open-to-slowing-cutting-edge-ai-ceo",
        "published": "2026-09-11T01:38:18.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Economic Times Tech",
        "title": "OpenAI is open to slowing AI development: Sam Altman tells staff",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/openai-is-open-to-slowing-ai-development-sam-altman-tells-staff",
        "published": "2026-09-11T02:52:10.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Hindu - Sci-Tech",
        "title": "Sam Altman tells staff OpenAI is open to slowing AI development: Report",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/sam-altman-tells-staff-openai-is-open-to-slowing-ai-development-report",
        "published": "2026-09-11T06:47:54.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Yonhap News",
        "title": "'Nothing new to announce' on possible chip collaboration with Samsung: OpenAI",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/nothing-new-to-announce-on-possible-chip-collaboration-with-samsung-6725979",
        "published": "2026-09-11T07:52:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Korea Times",
        "title": "'Nothing new to announce' on possible chip collaboration with Samsung: OpenAI",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/nothing-new-to-announce-on-possible-chip-collaboration-with-samsung",
        "published": "2026-09-11T08:07:03.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}