AI is already getting as good as the average human at a variety of tasks, but it could soon be solving problems that the best minds in the world haven’t yet been able to get around.
Greg Brockman, President of OpenAI, the company behind the groundbreaking ChatGPT, has suggested that artificial intelligence might soon conquer challenges that have eluded mathematicians for centuries – specifically, the Millennium Prize Problems. These seven problems, designated by the Clay Mathematics Institute in 2000, carry a $1 million prize for each solution and represent some of the most profound unsolved mysteries in mathematics.
Brockman’s confidence is striking: “One of the Millennium Prizes (being sovled).. do you think we plausibly will see that?” he was asked on a podcast. “I think for sure,” Brockman replied. “I mean there’s no question. I would put (the timing) at two to five years as the right number.”
He further elaborated on the significance of such an achievement: “I think ultimately, this comes back to the question of benchmarks, right? Being able to solve a Millennium Problem is a pretty high bar. And once you can do that, there are so many other things that will definitely be possible. And I think that we’re starting to see the leading edges of this.”
Brockman said he categorized the evolution of AI into five levels: chatbots, reasoners, agents, innovators, and organizations. “We’re basically somewhere in level three right now,” he says. “And level four, these innovators, that’s going to be different.” He paints a vivid picture of the future capabilities: “I recently posted some pictures of our visit to Abilene, Texas, where we’re building these big data centers together with our partner Oracle. And imagine taking that whole data center and just thinking hard about one problem. Imagine it just thinking about how to solve a Millennium Problem, or how to cure a specific kind of cancer.”
This vision extends beyond pure computation: “Maybe it needs access to some apparatus, maybe it needs access to robotic wet labs, maybe it needs access to different tools in the world. But that level of computational power coupled with the ability to experiment and learn from your ideas, that is going to be something the world has never seen.”
Brockman’s projection underscores a pivotal moment in AI development. The Millennium Prize Problems, such as the Riemann Hypothesis or the P versus NP problem, are not merely academic curiosities; their solutions would have profound implications across various scientific and technological domains. For instance, solving P versus NP could revolutionize cryptography, logistics, and drug discovery.
If Brockman’s timeline holds true, the next few years could mark a historical turning point where AI transitions from a powerful tool to an independent innovator, unlocking new frontiers in human knowledge and technological advancement. The implications for industries from healthcare to finance are immense, promising a future where humanity’s most complex challenges might finally meet their match in artificial intelligence.