The AI Hype in Science: A Physicist's Disillusionment
2025-05-20
Nick McGreivy, a Princeton PhD physicist, shares his experience applying AI to physics research. Initially optimistic about AI's potential to accelerate research, he found AI methods significantly underperformed their advertised capabilities. Many papers exaggerated AI's advantages, with issues like data leakage prevalent. He argues that the rapid rise of AI in science stems more from benefits to scientists (higher salaries, prestige) than genuine improvements to research efficiency. He calls for more rigorous AI evaluation and cautions against optimistic biases in AI research.