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Gergely Bérczi

Publications and source records attributed to Gergely Bérczi.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
arXiv2026

Chow polynomials and chain polynomials of matroids are not log-concave

The Hilbert--Poincaré series of the Chow rings of the toric varieties of matroids, often called the \emph{Chow polynomials}, and the $f$-polynomial of their boundary complexes, called the \emph{chain polynomials}, have been conjectured to only have real zeros. We construct several explicit infinite families of matroids from finite geometries, whose multichain counts fail to be log-concave. They share a common geometric construction called \emph{hyperplane coalescence}, together with several classical operations in projective geometry and combinatorial designs. This induces failures of log-concavity for Chow, augmented Chow, chain, and $h$-polynomials of several explicit infinite families of matroids, disproving the real-rootedness conjectures of Ferroni--Schröter, Huh--Stevens, and Athanasiadis--Kalampogia-Evangelinou from the lowest possible ranks. As an application of the same mechanism, we also give counterexamples to the log-concavity of $h$-polynomials of graph associahedra, answering in the negative a question of Sack.

math.CO↗
arXiv2026

Stratified motivic invariants and bivariate deformations of Poincaré polynomials

For a stratified variety $X$ and a motivic invariant $\mathbb{H}$, we consider the stratified invariant which interpolates the invariant of $X$ and that of its interior $X^{\circ}$. Based on observations in moduli theory, we introduce the notion of an echelon tower of stratified varieties and then prove explicit inductive formulae for the stratified invariants of the moduli spaces $\overline{M}_{0,n}$ of stable curves of genus $0$ and the Fulton-MacPherson varieties $Y[n]$ for any smooth projective variety $Y$. Using these, we show that the mysterious bivariate deformations of the even degree Poincaré polynomials of $\overline{M}_{0,n+1}$ and $\mathbb{P}^1[n]$ in \cite{BercziKiem2026} are nothing but stratified virtual Poincaré polynomials.

math.AG↗
arXiv2026

ProofCouncil: An LLM Agent for Solving Open Mathematical Problems

Large language models (LLMs) have shown increasing promise in solving open problems in mathematics. However, their performance can be further improved through agentic workflows tailored to real-world mathematical practice. To this end, we introduce ProofCouncil, a mathematical agent that is designed to tackle open problems using an author-critic architecture. ProofCouncil served as a submission to the second batch of FirstProof, a challenge consisting of 10 real-world mathematical problems that agents must solve autonomously. Its submissions for 6 of the 10 problems were judged by the referees to be correct up to at most minor revisions, showing the best performance among participating teams. We also evaluate ProofCouncil on 30 open problems collected from mathematical researchers. Among the 21 solutions that received human feedback, 5 were judged completely correct, 2 more were judged promising pending final verification, and a further 8 contained useful partial progress. In this short paper, we describe the development of ProofCouncil and the agent-building library used to create it, which we release as open source to the community.

cs.AI↗
arXiv2026

IMProofBench: Benchmarking AI on Research-Level Mathematical Proof Generation

As the mathematical capabilities of large language models (LLMs) improve, it becomes increasingly important to evaluate their performance on research-level tasks at the frontier of mathematical knowledge. However, existing benchmarks are limited, as they focus solely on final-answer questions or high-school competition problems. To address this gap, we introduce IMProofBench, a private benchmark consisting of 77 peer-reviewed problems developed by expert mathematicians. Each problem requires a detailed proof and is paired with subproblems that have final answers, supporting both an evaluation by human experts and a large-scale quantitative analysis through automated grading. Furthermore, unlike prior benchmarks, the evaluation setup simulates a realistic research environment: models operate in an agentic framework with tools like web search for literature review and mathematical software such as SageMath. Our results show that current LLMs can already solve a significant percentage of research-level questions. IMProofBench will continue to evolve as a dynamic benchmark in collaboration with the mathematical community, ensuring its relevance for evaluating the next generation of LLMs.

cs.CL↗
arXiv2026

Virtual invariants from the non-associative Hilbert scheme

We introduce a non-associative model for the Hilbert scheme of points in arbitrary dimension. We define a smooth ambient space, which we call the non-associative Hilbert scheme, containing the classical nested Hilbert scheme $\mathrm{NHilb}^{\underline{d}}(\mathbb{A}^n)$ as the associativity, cut out by an explicit section of an associativity bundle. This construction yields canonical perfect obstruction theories and virtual fundamental classes on $\mathrm{NHilb}^{\underline{d}}(\mathbb{A}^n)$ for all $(n,\underline d)$. Using virtual localization, we obtain closed formulas for these virtual classes as sums over admissible nested partitions. Over the punctual locus, we rewrite these as a single multivariable iterated residue formula governing all virtual integrals. Our construction works for all $n$, produces positive-dimensional virtual classes when $n$ is large compared to the number of points, and we expect that they extend the non-commutative matrix model and virtual class construction on Calabi-Yau threefolds.

math.AG↗
arXiv2026

Real-rootedness of the Poincaré polynomials of $\overline{\mathcal M}_{0,n}$: an AI-assisted proof

We prove real-rootedness for the Poincaré polynomial \[ P_n(t)=\sum_{i=0}^{n-3} \dim H^{2i}(\overline{\mathcal M}_{0,n};\mathbb{Q})t^i \] of the Deligne--Mumford moduli space $\overline{\mathcal M}_{0,n}$ of stable $n$-pointed rational curves, proving a conjecture of Aluffi--Chen--Marcolli. The proof starts from the Keel--Manin--Getzler recurrence, but its main new idea is a bivariate deformation $F_m(y,t)$ of the Poincaré polynomial. This deformation reveals a hidden interlacing structure not visible in the one-variable recurrence. For fixed $t<0$, the zero set of $F_m$ in the $y$-direction is controlled by a Sturm--Rolle argument on the interval $0<y<1-t$. The original polynomial is recovered on the slice $y=1$, and the ordered crossings of the moving roots through this slice give both real-rootedness and strict interlacing. Consequently, the Betti numbers of $\overline{\mathcal M}_{0,n}$ form an ultra-log-concave sequence. We further prove real-rootedness and ultra-log-concavity for the Poincaré polynomial of the Fulton--MacPherson space $\mathbb{P}^1[n]$ of $n$ ordered points in degenerations of the complex projective line. The proof for $\overline{\mathcal M}_{0,n}$ was obtained through an iterative AI-assisted workflow with Co-Mathematician, an agentic frontier-model system developed by Google DeepMind. Our role was to formulate the problem, evaluate the proposed proof attempts, identify gaps and request corrections, compare the developing argument with the literature, and refine the presentation of the final proof. Our additional human contribution was to observe that a similar residual deformation strategy applies to the Fulton--MacPherson spaces $\mathbb P^1[n]$, yielding the corresponding real-rootedness theorem.

math.AG↗
arXiv2026

Advancing Mathematics Research with AI-Driven Formal Proof Search

Large language models (LLMs) increasingly excel at mathematical reasoning, but their unreliability limits their utility in mathematics research. A mitigation is using LLMs to generate formal proofs in languages like Lean. We perform the first large-scale evaluation of this method's ability to solve open problems. Our most capable agent autonomously resolved 9 of 353 open Erdős problems at the per-problem cost of a few hundred dollars, proved 44/492 OEIS conjectures, and is being deployed in combinatorics, optimization, graph theory, algebraic geometry, and quantum optics research. A basic agent alternating LLM-based generation with Lean-based verification replicated the Erdős successes but proved costlier on the hardest problems. These findings demonstrate the power of AI-aided formal proof search and shed light on the agent designs that enable it.

cs.AI↗
arXiv2026

Positivity in classical enumerative geometry: a case study in synchronized AI-assisted mathematics

We study the symmetric polynomial $\prod_{α\in A_{n,d}}\bigl(1+α_1 x_1+\cdots+α_n x_n\bigr)$ where $A_{n,d}:=\{α\in\mathbb{Z}_{\ge 0}^n:|α|=d\}$, which is the total Chern class of $\mathrm{Sym}^d(\mathbb{C}^n)$, viewed as a torus representation whose Chern roots are the weights $α_1 x_1+\cdots+α_n x_n$ for $α\in A_{n,d}$. Its homogeneous degree-$k$ part $c_k(n,d)$ is the $k$-th Chern class of $\mathrm{Sym}^d(\mathbb{C}^n)$. These Chern classes, together with their coefficients in various symmetric function bases, play a central role in enumerative geometry. Despite their simple definition, general closed formulas for their coefficients are subtle, and many structural properties of these classes have remained poorly understood. In this paper we prove several conjectures concerning their structure, establish explicit formulas, and study log-concavity properties for both the Chern classes and their $K$-theoretic analogue. In rank two, passing to the Schur basis and expanding the Schur coefficients in the binomial basis of $d$, we uncover a new binomial log-concavity phenomenon and prove refined positivity results. The paper demonstrates a novel methodology: we combine several AI systems with human mathematical insight in a coordinated workflow, deploying each tool according to its strengths in experimental discovery, conjecture formation, symbolic proof construction, and verification. To our knowledge, this is one of the first detailed case studies of orchestrating multiple AI tools to make substantial progress on a coherent mathematical research project.

math.AG↗
arXiv2026

Connected Theorems: A Graph-Based Approach to Evaluating Mathematical Results

The evaluation of mathematical results plays a central role in assessing researchers' contributions and shaping the direction of the field. Currently, such evaluations rely primarily on human judgment, whether through journal peer review or committees at research institutions. To complement these traditional processes, we propose a data-driven approach. We construct a hierarchical graph linking conjectures, theorems, papers, authors and fields to capture their citation relationships. We then introduce a PageRank-style algorithm to compute influence scores for these entities. Using these scores, we analyze the evolution of field rankings over time and quantify the impact between fields. We hope this framework can contribute to the development of more advanced, quantitative methods for evaluating mathematical research and serve as a complement to expert assessment.

cs.SI↗
arXiv2026

Evolving Local Corrections for Global Constructions in Combinatorics

Many open problems in combinatorics admit reformulations in which a global construction can be achieved by the repeated application of small, finite correcting steps. This paper presents three computational case studies of this principle, carried out using AlphaEvolve as an experimental engine for proposing and iteratively refining such certificates. The problems we studied are: reconstruction of bipartite and planar graphs from vertex-deleted subgraphs; the Alon-Tarsi parity problem for Latin squares, approached via sign-reversing involutions built from local trades; Rota's Basis Conjecture, studied through local exchange policies on collections of bases. In these three problems the correcting steps take the form of a reconstruction rule, a parity-reversing involution, and a transversal family of bases, respectively. For each problem, we describe the experimental setup, the scoring protocols, and the outcomes of the searches, leading to concrete conjectures concerning the existence and structure of the relevant correcting steps. The aim is not to claim proofs, but rather to produce explicit algorithms and to reveal structural patterns that appear amenable to subsequent analysis by traditional mathematical methods.

math.GM↗
arXiv2026

Evolving Ranking Functions for Canonical Blow-Ups in Positive Characteristic

Resolution of singularities in positive characteristic remains a long-standing open problem in algebraic geometry. In characteristic zero, the problem was solved by Hironaka in 1964, work for which he was awarded the Fields Medal. Modern proofs proceed by constructing suitable ranking functions, that is, invariants shown to strictly decrease along canonical sequences of blow-ups, ensuring termination. In positive characteristic, however, no such general ranking function is known: Frobenius-specific pathologies, such as the kangaroo phenomenon, can cause classical characteristic-zero invariants to plateau or even temporarily increase, presenting a fundamental obstruction to existing approaches. In this paper we report a sequence of experiments using the evolutionary search model AlphaEvolve, designed to discover candidate ranking functions for a toy canonical blow-up process. Our test benchmarks consist of carefully selected hypersurface singularities in dimension $4$ and characteristic $p=3$, with monic purely inseparable leading term, a regime in which naive order-based invariants often fail. After iteratively refining the experimental design, we obtained a discretized five-component lexicographic ranking function satisfying a bounded-delay descent criterion with zero violations across the benchmark. These experiments in turn motivated our main results: the conjectural delayed ranking functions in characteristic $3$ formulated in two conjectures.

math.AG↗
arXiv2026

Flow-based Extremal Mathematical Structure Discovery

The discovery of extremal structures in mathematics requires navigating vast and nonconvex landscapes where analytical methods offer little guidance and brute-force search becomes intractable. We introduce FlowBoost, a closed-loop generative framework that learns to discover rare and extremal geometric structures by combining three components: (i) a geometry-aware conditional flow-matching model that learns to sample high-quality configurations, (ii) reward-guided policy optimization with action exploration that directly optimizes the generation process toward the objective while maintaining diversity, and (iii) stochastic local search for both training-data generation and final refinement. Unlike prior open-loop approaches, such as PatternBoost that retrains on filtered discrete samples, or AlphaEvolve which relies on frozen Large Language Models (LLMs) as evolutionary mutation operators, FlowBoost enforces geometric feasibility during sampling, and propagates reward signal directly into the generative model, closing the optimization loop and requiring much smaller training sets and shorter training times, and reducing the required outer-loop iterations by orders of magnitude, while eliminating dependence on LLMs. We demonstrate the framework on four geometric optimization problems: sphere packing in hypercubes, circle packing maximizing sum of radii, the Heilbronn triangle problem, and star discrepancy minimization. In several cases, FlowBoost discovers configurations that match or exceed the best known results. For circle packings, we improve the best known lower bounds, surpassing the LLM-based system AlphaEvolve while using substantially fewer computational resources.

math.CO↗
arXiv2024

Reinforcement Learning the Chromatic Symmetric Function

We propose a conjectural counting formula for the coefficients of the chromatic symmetric function of unit interval graphs using reinforcement learning. The formula counts specific disjoint cycle-tuples in the graphs, referred to as Eschers, which satisfy certain concatenation conditions. These conditions are identified by a reinforcement learning model and are independent of the particular unit interval graph, resulting a universal counting expression.

math.CO↗
arXiv2023

Fixed point distribution on Hilbert scheme of points

Let $\mathbf{k}$ be a closed field of characteristic zero. We prove that all monomial ideals sit in the curvilinear component of the Hilbert scheme of points of the affine space $\mathbb{A}_{\mathbf{k}}^n$, answering a long-standing question about the distribution of torus-fixed points among punctual components. This result confirms that the punctual Hilbert scheme is connected, a property previously established only for the full Hilbert scheme in 1966 by Hartshorne.

math.AG↗
arXiv2023

Complete collineations for maximum likelihood estimation

We import the algebro-geometric notion of a complete collineation into the study of maximum likelihood estimation in directed Gaussian graphical models. A complete collineation produces a perturbation of sample data, which we call a stabilisation of the sample. While a maximum likelihood estimate (MLE) may not exist or be unique given sample data, it is always unique given a stabilisation. We relate the MLE given a stabilisation to the MLE given original sample data, when one exists, providing necessary and sufficient conditions for the MLE given a stabilisation to be one given the original sample. For linear regression models, we show that the MLE given any stabilisation is the minimal norm choice among the MLEs given an original sample. We show that the MLE has a well-defined limit as the stabilisation of a sample tends to the original sample, and that the limit is an MLE given the original sample, when one exists. Finally, we study which MLEs given a sample can arise as such limits. We reduce this to a question regarding the non-emptiness of certain algebraic varieties.

math.ST↗
arXiv2023

Non-reductive geometric invariant theory and hyperbolicity

The Green--Griffiths--Lang and Kobayashi hyperbolicity conjectures for generic hypersurfaces of polynomial degree are proved using intersection theory for non-reductive geometric invariant theoretic quotients and recent work of Riedl and Yang.

math.AG↗
arXiv2023

Moment maps and cohomology of non-reductive quotients

Let $H$ be a complex linear algebraic group with internally graded unipotent radical acting on a complex projective variety $X$. Given an ample linearisation of the action and an associated Fubini-Study Kähler form which is invariant for a maximal compact subgroup $Q$ of $H$, we define a notion of moment map for the action of $H$, and under suitable conditions (that the linearisation is well-adapted and semistability coincides with stability) we describe the (non-reductive) GIT quotient $X/\!/H$ introduced by Bérczi, Doran, Hawes and Kirwan in terms of this moment map. Using this description we derive formulas for the Betti numbers of $X/\!/H$ and express the rational cohomology ring of $X/\!/H$ in terms of the rational cohomology ring of the GIT quotient $X/\!/T^H$, where $T^H$ is a maximal torus in $H$. We relate intersection pairings on $X/\!/H$ to intersection pairings on $X/\!/T^H$, obtaining a residue formula for these pairings on $X/\!/H$ analogous to the residue formula of Jeffrey-Kirwan. As an application, we announce a proof of the Green-Griffiths-Lang and Kobayashi conjectures for projective hypersurfaces with polynomial degree.

math.AG↗