Mathematicians are pushing back against the tech industry's encroachment. The Leiden Declaration, endorsed by the International Mathematical Union, warns that artificial intelligence threatens the core values of mathematical research.
Published on June 2, 2026, after an eight-month study by 16 researchers, the declaration highlights five key dangers: AI generating plausible but incorrect proofs, failing to cite human work, disrupting hiring and funding, promoting informal communications over peer review, and threatening academic autonomy as tech companies gain influence.
The timing is significant, coming two weeks after OpenAI announced its AI model disproved an 80-year-old geometry conjecture. Critics argue that OpenAI's announcement, made on the same day news broke about its IPO plans, operated on "market timelines" rather than scientific ones.
Kevin Buzzard of Imperial College London noted: "Mathematicians should find it quite striking that tech companies are suddenly interested in their work."
Rodrigo Ochigame of Leiden University pointed out that OpenAI's model is proprietary: "The AI model is proprietary and unavailable to anyone outside the company. We get a flashy promotional video, while basic information needed to assess the scientific meaning of the result is kept secret."
The declaration recommends that mathematicians disclose AI use, retain responsibility for their work, and credit human authors. It also calls on policymakers to protect author rights, regulate the AI industry, and invest in public computational infrastructure.
Fields Medalist Peter Scholze of the Max Planck Institute stated: "Mathematical ideas, like children, must be nurtured and grow over the years. Just like I do not want my children to be educated by AI, I am pondering my mathematical ideas without use of AI."
The International Mathematical Union's endorsement affirms that the future of mathematical research must be guided by human judgment. The union's vice president, Ulrike Tillmann, said: "Mathematics is, and should always remain, a profoundly human endeavor."