AI-Fueled Duel: Simultaneous Proofs Spark Credit Questions in Cryptography

Two independent teams used OpenAI’s GPT-5.6 Sol Ultra to tackle the same open problem in unclonable encryption, submitting arXiv preprints within about three hours of each other: MIT’s Seyoon Ragavan via a hands‑on, multi‑agent workflow, and Ananth with Amit Sahai using a bespoke UCLA system to pursue and critique the solution. The near‑simultaneous results raise questions about independent discovery and how credit is attributed in AI‑augmented research, though neither paper is peer‑reviewed yet.