Not evaluated
A factor-two approximation for shortest common superstring (family 128)
The gist
In its release of October 6, 2026, OpenAI claims a polynomial-time algorithm that comes within a factor of two of the shortest string containing each of the given words.
DiscoverIA status on October 12, 2026: not evaluated, meaning no third-party evaluation found.
AI draft, not reviewedWhat has not been reviewed?
Text written by an AI (DiscoverIA pipeline), on . The status and its sources come from the registry; only the explanatory text has not been reviewed. A reported error is corrected, then the text is reviewed.
Cite this entry
A single status snapshot since Oct 12, 2026: a citation always points to a dated snapshot.
Cite snapshot 1, Oct 12, 2026
APA citation with the dated link
BibTeX @misc, key discoveria-oai-fam-128-factor-two-approximation-shortest-common-r1
@misc{discoveria-oai-fam-128-factor-two-approximation-shortest-common-r1,
author = {{DiscoverIA}},
title = {A factor-two approximation for shortest common superstring (family 128)},
howpublished = {DiscoverIA registry, entry oai-fam-128-factor-two-approximation-shortest-common},
note = {Status “Not evaluated”, snapshot 1, recorded on October 12, 2026. New result},
year = {2026},
url = {https://discoveria.ai/entry/oai-fam-128-factor-two-approximation-shortest-common#releve-1},
urldate = {2026-10-12}
}Dated link opens this snapshot in the history
To understand ≈ 20 s reading time, estimated
What it changes
If the manuscript held, an algorithm whose running time is bounded by a power of the input size would always return a string at most twice as long as the shortest possible one. A factor-two approximation is a guarantee, not an exact value: the string obtained may be longer than the best one.
What remains unclear
No independent assessment is recorded. The Lean (a language in which a computer checks every step of a proof) is supplied by OpenAI and marked “review: status: unchecked” in formalization.yaml.
For experts
Sources, method, key facts, status history, report an error
Status
Not evaluated
Recorded on · github.com · 128.md
Step 1 of 4 on the scale: not evaluated. Next step: under review.
- Announced
- Recordednot evaluated
- nextTo follow
What this status means
Source reading : Source read word for word (level 3 of 3)
The result is declared neither right nor wrong.
To move to “Under review”: a public review under way. To “Peer reviewed”: a journal publication or a review by named experts.
Sources
- Main sourcegithub.com · CONTENTS.mdlink only, reading not recorded
- Repositorygithub.com · A-Polynomial-Time-2…link only, reading not recorded
- Lean proofgithub.com · 128.mdpage read word for word
- Lean proofgithub.com · Superstring.leanlink only, reading not recorded
Method
OpenAI publishes one manuscript, “A Polynomial-Time 2-Approximation for Shortest Common Superstring”, dated September 24, 2026. The repository also holds lean/docs/128.md, which describes the scope of the Lean formalisation (1 Comparator statement), and lean/ComparatorChallenges/Superstring.lean. DiscoverIA status: not evaluated, meaning that no third-party evaluation has been found in the sources read. Set on October 12, 2026 from github.com (page read, quotation checked word for word: “describes the scope of the Lean formalization”).
Limits
No named third party: the recorded checks come from the claimant or from a platform tool. The claimant supplies a Lean proof; as of this date, DiscoverIA has found no independent verification of this proof or of the result.
Key facts
- Claimed by
- OpenAI (unreleased internal model)
announced on Oct 6, 2026 - Nature
- new result
- Field
- Theoretical computer science
- In openai/math
- family 128, section “Theoretical computer science”, 1 manuscript dated Sep 24, 2026
- Lean proof
- supplied by the claimant, marked “unchecked” (not reviewed) in its repository
- Revisions
- none reported by the claimant
- Checked by
- claimant (Lean supplied, not checked by a third party)
- Sources
- 4 : 1 read word for word, 3 links only
- This entry
- AI draft, not reviewed
Status history
Only one observation so far.
- 01
First observation:Not evaluatedCurrent status
Family with a Lean proof supplied by the claimant. No third-party check read; the source marks this proof as not reviewed (“unchecked”).
Source: github.comread word for word
An observation is added; none is ever erased.
In the same set
openai/math: 719 manuscripts in 372 families from an unreleased internal model · entry 124 of 372, by family number
- Not evaluated : The approximation threshold for metric k-median (family 125)
- Not evaluated : Exponential semidefinite complexity of perfect matching (family 126)
- Not evaluated : The asymptotic Gotsman–Linial conjecture (family 127)
- Not evaluated : A factor-two approximation for shortest common superstring (family 128)
- Not evaluated : Exponential state costs for two-way automata (family 129)
- Not evaluated : Fourier transforms below n log n (family 130)
- Not evaluated : Polynomial mixing of graph switches with prescribed degrees (family 131)
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