Live from ICM 2026: What Is Math For in the Age of AI?

Mathematicians are witnessing a profound shift in their field. AI systems are now producing proofs, spotting connections between distant fields, and, in a few cases, solving problems that had stumped mathematicians for decades. The pace of progress over the past several months has raised challenging questions: What can AI systems actually do? And what happens to the more human, creative aspects of the field once machines can match – or exceed – people at problem-solving? In this special live episode of The Joy of Why, recorded at the International Congress of Mathematicians in Philadelphia on July 26, 2026, hosts Janna Levin and Steven Strogatz are joined by three mathematicians responding to the rise of AI in math: Akshay Venkatesh at the Institute for Advanced Study; Ravi Vakil at Stanford University and president of the American Mathematical Society; and Alex Kontorovich at Rutgers University. Together they discuss what recent AI-generated proofs really demonstrate, what will be gained and lost as mathematics becomes more machine-assisted at the frontier, and what this means for the next generation of mathematicians. The conversation turns to a deeper question: What do mathematicians value about doing mathematics in the first place? The answer involves grappling with what proof and understanding really mean, and with the surprising importance of storytelling.