> I don't know why anyone should care about understanding the results if the AI is better at math than us

This is a big if, right? AI can still generate subtle or even silly mistakes that any normal human, let alone a mathematician, wouldn't make. Besides, math is more than just getting a conclusion but to understand and to generalize new ways of solving problems. After all, mathematicians are a curious bunch. To quote Hilbert's epitaph: We must know. We shall know.

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bayesnet 2 hours ago | parent | next [-]

It’s a bit of an ominous quote given that Hilbert’s program was dismantled shortly thereafter by Gödel…

	▲	pfdietz 2 hours ago \| parent [-]
		I'm reminded of the joke about the two friends who come across a bear in the woods. When one puts on running shoes, his friend chides him that he can't outrun the bear. He responds, "I don't need to outrun the bear, I just need to outrun you." AI doesn't have to implement Hilbert's vision and be able to prove everything. I just has to out-prove human mathematicians.

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a2ff6eeb0 2 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

Well, that's why we have automated proof checking. And again, I don't think humans will be able to solve problems at a commercial scale in the future.

Maybe we'll have some hobbyist dabblers, but any real progress will be done by machines that skip the human.