Artificial intelligence emerged as a dominant theme at the fourth International Congress of Basic Science (ICBS) in Beijing, where leading mathematicians and physicists debated how the technology will reshape fundamental research. The congress, held from 9 to 21 August at the Beijing Institute of Mathematical Sciences and Applications (BIMSA), drew more than 800 participants from over 30 countries under the banner «Advancing science for humanity».
The event underscored China's rapid ascent in global science. A recent analysis by Nature, based on 2025 data, placed China ahead of the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom in overall research output. The study found that 51 of the world's top 100 institutions are in China, compared with only four in the UK. In the physical sciences alone, China still claims 30 of the top 100 institutions, with seven from the UK.
Fields medalist Martin Hairer from EPFL Lausanne told attendees that AI will not end mathematics but will transform how it is conducted, potentially accelerating certain areas while allowing others to fade. Caucher Birkar of Tsinghua University, also a Fields medalist, acknowledged that AI excels at computation, searching for examples, and completing proofs of mathematical lemmas, yet struggles to generate genuinely original ideas.
Turing Award laureate Robert Endre Tarjan from Princeton University encouraged young researchers to remain curious and commit to long-term scientific exploration. He advised that while scientists can train AI to become a powerful tool for discovery, they must also cultivate their own ability to identify meaningful questions and exercise independent judgment.
Congress chair Shing-Tung Yau, the Fields medalist who founded ICBS in 2023 and serves as BIMSA president, offered a closing perspective: AI will enhance scientific research, but the essence of discovery will always depend on human creativity, imagination, and independent thinking.
The congress featured an extensive programme of over 500 academic sessions spanning topics from generative AI reasoning to quantum information. Nine scientists, including four women, received the inaugural Basic Science Medal, among them Claire Voisin for algebraic geometry, Yifang Wang for particle physics, Xiao-Gang Wen for condensed matter, Andrea Liu for complex systems, Zhenan Bao for flexible electronics, Xiaowei Zhuang for imaging, and Feng Zhang, co-discoverer of CRISPR.
Frontiers of Science Awards were presented to more than 500 researchers from 20 countries whose work over the past five to ten years was judged of «excellent and outstanding scholarly value» in the three fields represented at ICBS. Authors from numerous Chinese institutions were among the recipients, reflecting the growing international impact of China's basic science research.
The programme also included 20 plenary sessions, over 400 Frontiers of Science Awardee talks, and dedicated events for entrepreneurs and students. Evening gatherings known as «nights of mathematics, physics and engineering» featured dance and music performances by students. An exchange meeting connected Beijing research institutions seeking to integrate basic science with frontier technologies.
At the closing ceremony, winners of this year's ICBS Innovation Fellowships were announced. All recipients are researchers under 50 working full-time in China who have demonstrated potential in mathematics, physics, information sciences, and other fundamental and interdisciplinary fields. Each fellow receives research funding and the opportunity to collaborate with a partner institution in China for an agreed period.
The congress's international character was evident in BIMSA's own composition: 50 of its 140 full-time researchers come from outside China. The institute, of which Yau is president, serves as a hub for the country's expanding basic science enterprise.