Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of recent advances in artificial intelligence on (a) mathematical research in the UK and (b) the mathematical sciences as a discipline.

AI is accelerating discovery and transforming how research is conducted. Backed by up to £137 million, the Government’s AI for Science Strategy responds to this transformation by strengthen researcher’s access to the compute, data, skills and tools needed to realise the potential for AI-enabled research, while supporting the UK’s leading research sector.

UKRI and BIST have discussed the potential impact of recent developments in AI on basic research (as defined under the Frascati system), including the mathematical sciences.

UKRI-EPSRC has made no formal assessment of potential changes to the future of skills, training and research infrastructure in mathematical sciences due to recent changes in AI-generated mathematical research. EPSRC-funded investments such as the International Centre of Mathematical Sciences and the Isaac Newton Institute, alongside the Academy of Mathematical Sciences, are engaged in community-wide discussions about the implications of AI-generated mathematical research.

Government and UKRI-EPSRC continue to monitor developments and maintain close dialogue with the mathematical sciences community as the implications of advances in AI mathematical capability are assessed and understood.