Claude calculates nine-loop physics scattering amplitudes
Anthropic announced that Claude calculated six-particle scattering amplitudes at nine loops in planar N=4 super-Yang-Mills theory, answering an open challenge posed to AI labs by physicist Matt von Hippel. Running largely unsupervised over several days from a single prompt, Claude surpassed previous eight-loop human records at a cost of a few thousand dollars, with results verified by SLAC physicist Lance Dixon.
Frontier AI models are transitioning from assisting with code to autonomously driving complex mathematical research and breaking established computational records in theoretical physics.
* Autonomous Multi-Day Reasoning: Claude executed the multi-stage derivation and compute pipeline largely unsupervised over several days, demonstrating robust long-horizon agentic capability.
* Record-Breaking Scientific Output: By reaching nine loops in planar N=4 super-Yang-Mills, Claude pushed beyond the previous eight-loop threshold achieved by human physicists.
* Drastic Cost and Time Reduction: What previously took years of specialized effort was accomplished in days for a few thousand dollars of compute.
* Rigorous Independent Verification: The results were validated by Lance Dixon, the physicist behind the previous eight-loop record, cementing the legitimacy of the findings.
DISCOVERED
1h ago
2026-09-25
PUBLISHED
2h ago
2026-09-25
RELEVANCE
AUTHOR
AnthropicAI