Fields Medalist Says AI Won't Kill Math, Will Reshape Research

Hairer: AI Will Reshape Mathematical Research, Not Replace It

Beijing, August 16, 2026 - Artificial intelligence will not kill mathematics, but it will fundamentally reshape how mathematical research is conducted, according to Fields Medalist Martin Hairer in an interview with CGTN on the sidelines of the 2026 International Congress of Basic Science (ICBS) in Beijing.

"AI will not kill mathematics but will reshape mathematical research," Hairer said, offering a measured counterpoint to the anxiety that has spread through academic departments worldwide as large language models and automated theorem provers advance. His remarks arrived mid-way through ICBS 2026, the four-year-old Beijing congress that has quickly become one of the most visible fixtures on the international basic-science calendar.

Tags: Martin Hairer, Fields Medal, AI mathematics, mathematical research, ICBS 2026, China basic science, artificial intelligence, stochastic PDE, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing Huairou, math research AI, Fields Medalist

Why a Fields Medalist's View Carries Weight

Hairer speaks from an unusual vantage point in the AI-and-mathematics debate. He won the Fields Medal in 2014 - often described as the "Nobel Prize of Mathematics" and awarded every four years to up to four mathematicians under 40 - for his contributions to the theory of stochastic partial differential equations, particularly his development of the theory of regularity structures. That work gave mathematicians rigorous tools for handling equations driven by random noise, a domain where intuitive methods routinely fail.

A professor at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL) and Imperial College London, Hairer is also an international member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He told CGTN he has cooperated with China's academic community for years and has witnessed the country's scientific and technological development at close range. His appearance at ICBS 2026 is part of a broader pattern: the congress has become a magnet for laureates, with the 2025 edition drawing more than 1,000 scholars including four Fields Medalists, three Nobel laureates and two Turing Award winners.

The Argument: AI as a Research Partner, Not a Replacement

For Hairer, mathematics rests on a foundation that automation can assist but not displace. In his interview, he emphasized that mathematics is built on universal truths - propositions that remain true regardless of technology, culture or time. He cited the permanence of statements such as the irrationality of the square root of two as an example of the kind of certainty mathematics uniquely provides in a world where most knowledge is provisional.

That permanence, he argued, is precisely what makes mathematics a shared language across disciplines. Scientists in physics, engineering, computer science and economics can interpret, connect and build upon one another's work because mathematics gives them a common framework. The rise of AI, in this view, does not erode that framework; it changes who can use it and how quickly they can explore it.

Hairer also pushed back against the assumption that mathematics must justify itself through immediate utility. "Many areas of mathematics don't have immediate utility or immediate applications," he said. "One reason why we do it is mostly curiosity. Humanity got where it is by having a thirst for knowledge." That framing matters as research-funding agencies worldwide weigh whether to steer basic science toward applied, AI-adjacent projects.

China's Basic-Science Push Reaches a Watershed

Hairer's comments land at a politically significant moment for Chinese science. In late July, mathematicians Deng Yu and Wang Hong became the first Chinese citizens to win the Fields Medal, awarded at the 2026 International Congress of Mathematicians in Philadelphia - a milestone greeted with celebration across Chinese universities and state media. ICBS 2026, running from August 9 to 21 at Huairou Science City in Beijing under the theme "Advancing Basic Science for Humanity," has showcased that momentum to roughly 1,000 participants from more than 30 countries and regions.

The congress is also distributing its inaugural ICBS Medals, established this year to recognize breakthrough work in mathematics, physics and engineering. Nine researchers received medals across the three fields, and the Frontiers of Science Award was conferred alongside them. Hairer's own interview reflects the event's diplomatic role as much as its scientific one: he praised China's "long-term and stable strategy" for building a sci-tech powerhouse by 2035, saying it has laid a solid foundation for encouraging top international scientists with ties to China to return for further research.

What AI's Rise Means for Asia-Pacific Research Communities

The AI-and-mathematics question has particular resonance in the Asia-Pacific, where Japan, China and South Korea are all investing heavily in both basic research and AI capability. Japan's own mathematical tradition - three of its nationals, Kunihiko Kodaira, Heisuke Hironaka and Shigefumi Mori, have won Fields Medals - gives Tokyo a stake in the same debates Hairer addressed. Japanese universities and institutes such as RIKEN are experimenting with machine learning as a tool for conjecture-generation and proof assistance, mirroring efforts in Beijing and Shanghai.

For policymakers in Tokyo and Seoul, Hairer's message cuts against the temptation to treat AI as a substitute for long-horizon basic research. If AI reshapes rather than replaces mathematics, then the mathematicians who understand its foundations - and who can direct AI systems toward productive questions - become more valuable, not less. The race is not simply about who builds the biggest model, but about who maintains the deepest bench of researchers able to use it.

A Delicate Balance Between Automation and Insight

The practical consequences for working mathematicians are already visible. Automated theorem provers have verified proofs that humans once labored over for years, and AI systems have proposed conjectures that surprised their own developers. Yet Hairer's emphasis on curiosity and universal truth suggests a division of labor: machines may accelerate the mechanical parts of the craft - computation, case-checking, pattern search - while the framing of questions and the recognition of deep structure remain distinctively human activities.

That balance has institutional implications. If Hairer is right, mathematics departments should treat AI as an instrument to be integrated into research workflows rather than a threat to be resisted - and funding agencies should resist the temptation to redirect all basic-science money toward immediately applicable AI research. The countries that strike that balance well, including those in Asia, could gain an edge in both mathematics and the AI systems built on its foundations.

What to Watch For

ICBS 2026 continues through August 21, with more than 500 academic sessions spanning fields from generative AI reasoning to quantum information. The remaining program will feature additional laureates and panels likely to return to the AI-and-mathematics question. Watch for three signals in the coming weeks: whether China's first Fields Medalists translate into a measurable rise in international applications to Chinese mathematics programs; whether Japanese and South Korean institutions respond to Beijing's talent draw with their own basic-science initiatives; and whether AI-powered theorem provers achieve a high-profile verification that shifts mainstream opinion on the boundaries of automated mathematics.

For Asia-Pacific readers, the deeper story is about positioning. China is using events like ICBS to signal that it wants to be the destination of choice for global research talent, and it now has the Fields Medal record to back that ambition. Hairer's counsel - that AI changes how mathematics is done but not why it matters - is a reminder that the foundations remain the prize. As the tools change, the countries that continue to invest in the people who ask the questions will define what comes next.

By Kenji Tanaka, Staff Writer

This article was produced with AI-assisted research and editorial support. Sources: CGTN, Bastille Post, BIMSA.