A major leap in artificial intelligence research has emerged from China, where a new AI system has surpassed leading American models in solving complex geometry problems at International Mathematical Olympiad level. The development highlights rapid progress in AI-driven mathematical reasoning and problem generation.
Researchers from the Beijing Institute for General Artificial Intelligence and Peking University revealed the breakthrough in a study published in Nature Machine Intelligence. The system, named TongGeometry, demonstrated the ability to solve advanced geometry problems in less than half the time taken by comparable US systems, while relying on simpler computational resources.
TongGeometry stands out because it is built as a neuro-symbolic system. It can discover, propose, and prove IMO-level geometry problems using a structured tree-search approach. According to its developers, it “functioned more like a coach who both designs training problems and guides solution strategies, rather than merely a student who solves given problems.” This design allows the system to go beyond answering questions and actively shape learning paths.
Unlike most existing AI models that focus only on problem-solving, TongGeometry can also create new problems. The system was trained on 196 past Olympiad geometry questions. Using this dataset, it generated around 6.7 billion new geometry problems that require auxiliary constructions, a key challenge in advanced geometry.
The impact of this capability has already reached real-world testing. 3 of the AI-generated problems were selected for use in a Chinese national team qualifying exam. These same problems also appeared in a top Olympiad competition in the United States in 2024, showing the global relevance and difficulty level of the content produced by the system.
This development signals a shift in how AI can contribute to mathematics education and competition training. By combining problem-solving with problem creation, TongGeometry demonstrates a more holistic and advanced approach to mathematical intelligence.
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