OpenAI claimed to solve the million-dollar Navier-Stokes problem using an AI-generated proof, but mathematicians argue the company solved a variant involving an artificial external force rather than the fundamental problem without external forces that the field actually cares about. A new proof shows OpenAI's approach cannot be extended to solve the genuine problem, suggesting the company exploited a loophole in the Clay Institute's original problem statement.
OpenAI claimed to solve the Navier-Stokes problem, a $1-million Clay Mathematics Institute prize, but mathematicians argue it solved a variant with an artificial external force rather than the fundamental problem the field cares about. Three mathematicians proved OpenAI's approach cannot extend to the full problem, and experts contend the company exploited a loophole in the prize's original formulation.