Plectis Atlas
Search

↑ and ↓ move, Enter opens, Esc closes.

A C1 counterexample to the entropy conjecture

OpenAI groups related papers into a “family”. OpenAI’s catalogue describes this one:

Constructs a noninvertible C1 self-map of a compact smooth manifold with zero topological entropy but eigenvalue 2 on second homology. This disproves the homological entropy lower bound for general C1 self-maps: homological growth need not force positive orbit complexity. (OpenAI’s Lean note)

Lean is a language for mathematical statements and proofs that a computer can verify. The assessments below ask whether those statements express the result OpenAI describes here.

Both independent assessments find that the Lean statements express or imply the whole result described above. Read the assessments

The paper states

Theorem 1.1

In A C^1 Counterexample to the Entropy Conjecture

Possible match to OpenAI’s description, selected from the papers’ main statements because it shares the most wording. No review confirming the selection is recorded.

There are a positive integer q and a C^1 self-map f of the compact smooth manifold

M=(\R/100\Z)\times(S^2)^{q+1}

such that \htop(f)=0 and f_*:H_2(M;\R)\to H_2(M;\R) has eigenvalue 2. In particular,

\htop(f)=0<\log 2\le \log\rho(f_*).
Reported proof verification
One Lean statement in the release; two independent groups report that Comparator accepted runs for this file at the version shown here.

Papers

Each paper opens as a reading page in the browser, with the PDF beside it. The statements each paper opens with are on its reading page.

A C^1 Counterexample to the Entropy Conjecture

Undated, current edition.

Read it herePDF

We disprove the general C1 self-map formulation of Shub’s entropy conjecture. We construct a noninvertible C1 self-map of a compact smooth manifold without boundary whose topological entropy is zero, while its action on second real homology has eigenvalue 2. Thus the topological entropy is strictly smaller than the logarithm of the homological spectral radius.

One Lean statement in this family

Lean is a language for mathematical statements and proofs that a computer can verify. The Lean statement below is shown beside its possible paper counterpart, with the reason they were linked.

For a configured theorem, the Comparator program tests whether OpenAI’s separate proof proves the exact Lean statement using only the allowed axioms. Some statement files instead configure definitions for comparison by name and type. Acceptance does not establish that a formal statement means the same thing as the paper’s theorem.

C1EntropyCounterexample

The paper states

The words they share: log, manifold, integer, self, map, entropy, counterexample, positive, compact, smooth, eigenvalue.

Possible Lean counterpart

Selected from shared wording. No review of whether the statements mean the same thing is recorded.

A $C^1$ counterexample to the entropy conjecture

C1EntropyCounterexample.lean, the release lists it as a supporting statement.

theorem exists_C1_entropy_counterexample :    ∃ q : ℕ, 0 < q ∧ ∃ f : CounterexampleManifold q → CounterexampleManifold q, ∃ hf : IsC1SelfMap q f, Dynamics.coverEntropy f (Set.univ : Set (CounterexampleManifold q)) = (0 : EReal) ∧ (∃ v : RealSingularHomology 2 (CounterexampleManifold q), v ≠ 0 ∧ realHomologyMap 2 f hf.1 v = (2 : ℝ) • v) ∧ 0 < Real.log (2 : ℝ) ∧ Real.log (2 : ℝ) ≤ Real.log (totalRealHomologySpectralRadius f hf.1) ∧ ¬ Function.Bijective f ∧ 5 ≤ 2 * q + 3 := by  sorry

This file states the theorem with sorry, a placeholder, in place of its proof. OpenAI supplies a separate proof file. Comparator tests whether that proof proves the statement here.

two independent groups report that Comparator accepted runs for this Lean statement file: cert-machine; MathVet. Who ran the proof-verification program

  • cert-machine records it as “CERTIFIED”.
  • MathVet records it as “comparator-sandboxed-pass”.

Read the complete Lean statement

Independent comparisons and proof-verification reports

Does the Lean express the advertised result?

MathVet and cert-machine agree on how much of the advertised result the Lean statements express.

MathVet and Carlos Toledo’s cert-machine independently assessed whether this family’s Lean statements express the whole result OpenAI describes in its catalogue. These are assessments of the family as a whole, not of each paper theorem separately.

MathVet finds that the Lean statements express or imply the whole advertised result (their term: “full”).

Their note: Statement: ∃ q > 0 and a non-bijective C¹ self-map f of S¹ × (S²)^(q+1) (C¹ = locally the restriction of an ambient C¹ map) with Dynamics.coverEntropy f univ = 0, a nonzero v ∈ H₂(M;ℝ) with f_* v = 2v, and log 2 ≤ log(total real-homology spectral radius): exactly the summary’s counterexample. Mathlib’s coverEntropy is the topological entropy on compact metric spaces.

Definitions the group asks readers to compare with the paper: totalRealHomologySpectralRadius f := sSup {r | ∃ n a b u v, (u ≠ 0 ∨ v ≠ 0) ∧ f_* u = a•u − b•v ∧ f_* v = b•u + a•v ∧ r = √(a²+b²)} (custom; moduli of complex eigenvalues over all degrees; if the set were unbounded sSup = 0 and the clause log 2 ≤ log radius would fail, so it cannot trivialise)

“full”, in their words: The challenge statements imply the headline claim after unpacking definitions or one routine step.

Their method: An independent, model-assisted, pre-referee reading of each family’s challenge statements against its headline claim under a published rubric (PROTOCOL.md), with its own Comparator runs per challenge.

cert-machine finds that the Lean statements express or imply the whole advertised result (their term: “MATCHES”).

“MATCHES”, in their words: The challenge statements state the headline as OpenAI wrote it.

Their method: Every Comparator challenge re-run on Linux with nanoda switched on, decided by a preregistered rule.

OpenAI’s own note on what its Lean covers

Shub’s entropy conjecture predicts that a smooth self-map’s topological entropy is at least the logarithm of the spectral radius of its action on real homology. The formalization gives a counterexample to the general $C^1$ self-map version: a noninvertible $C^1$ map on a compact smooth manifold without boundary has topological entropy zero, while its action on second real homology has a nonzero eigenvector with eigenvalue $2$. Thus the homological lower bound is strictly positive and fails for this map.

AI-drafted comparisons, with no recorded human review

  • A $C^1$ counterexample to the entropy conjecture C1EntropyCounterexample

    Unreviewed AI draft: states a paper’s theorem as the paper does. States the main theorem: a noninvertible C¹ self-map of the paper’s compact manifold with zero topological entropy whose action on second real homology has eigenvalue 2.

Who ran the proof-verification program?

These groups report running Comparator with the release’s Lean statement files. For a configured theorem, it verifies OpenAI’s separate proof against the exact statement; some files instead configure definitions for comparison by name and type. Each row is the named group’s report. Atlas has not repeated the runs.

These reports do not list the software versions, proof-verification programs, axioms, time or memory in separate fields. Any such details in a report’s prose are reproduced below.

A $C^1$ counterexample to the entropy conjecture C1EntropyCounterexample

Two reports, all at the release’s recorded version.

Reported byTheir wordTheir accountDateOriginal report
cert-machine“CERTIFIED”Re-run through Comparator with the independent nanoda kernel switched on: Lean’s kernel and nanoda both accept OpenAI’s solution.10 October 2026Original report
MathVet“comparator-sandboxed-pass”Re-run through Comparator in a sandboxed virtual machine: accepted.8 October 2026Original report

What these papers cite in the release, and what cites them

These links come from the papers’ bibliographies. A citation records that one paper cites another; how each cited result is used has not been examined here.

Papers elsewhere in the release that this family’s papers cite

This family’s papers cite no paper elsewhere in the release.

Papers elsewhere in the release that cite this family’s papers

No paper elsewhere in the release cites this family’s papers.

References outside the release

Each paper’s outside references are listed with it on its reading page, where each citation is placed. Every outside work cited in the release: References outside the release

Explain a result, compare statements or propose a correction

Atlas has no contributed explanation for this family yet. You can offer one with a GitHub account. You receive named credit and disclose any AI assistance.

Each button opens a GitHub form with this page and its source version filled in. Opening the form does not reserve the work.

Offer to write an explanationCompare the Lean statement with the paperSuggest a source attributionSuggest a change

What people have said

Commentary on this family by others, dated and credited. It is commentary, not a finding.

  • An unsigned public tier list, the OpenAI Math Tier List, classes it as a counterexample and rates its significance, if it holds up, as “Major math journal”. The page says that nothing on it is verified.

    Author not stated. Source

Questions awaiting review

Each item identifies a statement, definition or report that needs further review. Its link opens a GitHub form with the source version already recorded.

Read the Lean statement against the paper

  • An AI agent drafted an assessment of which part of the paper this Lean statement expresses. No named human review is recorded. Open the form

Identify the theorem the catalogue describes

  • Family 151 The theorem shown was selected from shared wording with OpenAI’s description. Atlas records no review confirming that it is the theorem the description means. Open the form

Address a question raised in an independent assessment

Compare the proposed paper and Lean matches

  • Family 151 Atlas records no review of whether each linked Lean statement and paper theorem mean the same thing. Open the form