OpenAI Just Solved One of the Hardest Problems in Math

SPEAKER_1 (0:00)

This podcast is brought to you by ReliaQuest. Cyber criminals are constantly attacking. They want your data, they want your identity, they want your innovation. ReliaQuest fortifies your business with agentic defense, AI that detects, contains, and eliminates cyber threats in minutes. It helps your security team move faster at the work that matters most to protect the business now, and delivers insights to help them predict what's next. ReliaQuest, agentic defense for the enterprise. Learn more at reliaquest.com.

Alex Ossola (0:34)

A dozen nations say they'll impose trade restrictions on Israel over its expansion of settlements in the West Bank. Plus, OpenAI says it's solved one of the hardest problems in math.

Ben Cohen (0:45)

They've been able to show that these models are becoming increasingly powerful and can do lots of stuff that would have sounded really improbable and even impossible not all that long ago.

Alex Ossola (0:56)

And a growing number of colleges are admitting students who didn't even apply directly. It's Tuesday, September 8th. I'm Alex Ossola for the Wall Street Journal. This is the PM Edition of What's News, the top headlines and business stories that move the world today.

We begin this evening in Washington, where Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch III announced that he's retiring and will leave by the end of the year. Bunch is the first African American and the first historian to lead the institution, which is the world's largest museum and research complex. His departure follows more than a year of tension with President Trump over the way US history is portrayed at the Smithsonian. The Smithsonian's governing Board of Regents is expected to name an acting chief.

In New York City, officials have released documents that detail what the city knew about the toxic conditions around Ground Zero after the September 11th terrorist attacks. It will be 25 years since September 11th this Friday. New York City Mayor Zoran Mamdani said today that more people have died from related illnesses than the nearly 3,000 who were killed on that day.

Zoran Mamdani (2:05)

People got sick because the leaders they trusted lied and told them they were safe to breathe in toxic air.

Alex Ossola (2:13)

First responders and others who lived and worked in the area around the World Trade Center site have suffered from respiratory illnesses and chronic conditions, including cancer, as a result of their exposure. Researchers have found that first responders and other workers at the World Trade Center site are more likely to have leukemia than the average person.

Zoran Mamdani (2:31)

These are documents that show what the city knew about the toxic air around Ground Zero, when they knew it, and how they acted to limit liability. They contain details about DEP's response. They show how asbestos was found nearly everywhere that inspectors tested.

And they will help New Yorkers access the health care they need.

Alex Ossola (2:52)

The documents are now on a public portal operated by the city, and more documents will be added to it over the next year.

Twelve countries said today that they would impose new trade restrictions on Israel over the expansion of settlements in the West Bank. The UK was the first country to announce the measures. Speaking at the House of Commons today, UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said the country would stop direct trade with the West Bank settlements.

Ed Miliband (3:20)

We refuse to be bystanders to further suffering and to the destruction of the two-state solution.

Alex Ossola (3:26)

The other countries included Canada and European nations like France and Norway. Israel accused the UK of interfering in its sovereign affairs and retaliated by saying it would close the British consulate in East Jerusalem and expel British representatives from the US-led Coordination Centre for post-war Gaza.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters in Florida that the UK had alerted the Trump administration to its plans before the announcement. Rubio said that the US wouldn't do what the UK did, but that Trump hadn't commented yet.

Marco Rubio (3:56)

We share the goal of stability. We don't want to see some uptick in violence or an uptick in conflict or tensions in the West Bank at a very tenuous time in the region. There's always tenuous times.

Alex Ossola (4:08)

And a group of the 18 biggest shipping countries warned today that threats like global conflicts and shadow fleets are spreading uncertainty across global supply chains. The informal alliance called the Consultative Shipping Group said attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz and the Black Sea were signs that freedom of navigation, a cornerstone of global shipping, is eroding and that's sending costs higher. International oil prices touched above $99 a barrel today after more attacks on energy infrastructure in the Middle East, with Houthi militants firing drones and missiles at gas and oil storage facilities in Saudi Arabia. Oil futures later gave up some of those gains and closed just under $98 a barrel. In stocks, indexes fell to start the week. The Dow led the declines, ending down 1.2%.