>divert resources away from math and become a math research entity unto themselves
If only pure math were a source of riches, that might work out well for them.
I have a book on mathematical cranks where that seems to be the common delusion, that if only you solve some open problems then fame and fortune must surely follow.
I mean the people. I didn't mean or think that math research fundinng was a source of riches anyway; It's funded currently by mostly public money, how rich can any math researchers get from public money(compared to RSUs from stock grants)?
I think it depends on the motivation of the funding partners. I think funding is mostly about building researcher and student talent and knowledge moving forward.
To transfer that to AI in private hands seems a bit crazy, but what do I know? I think funding bodies will stay the course in the short term before bending to some behind closed doors persuasion to feed the AI machine.
If only pure math were a source of riches, that might work out well for them.
I have a book on mathematical cranks where that seems to be the common delusion, that if only you solve some open problems then fame and fortune must surely follow.