# The Einstein Test: Towards a Practical Test of a Machine's Ability to Exhibit Superintelligence

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2501.06948 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2501.06948/

## Key facts

- No citing papers in the map yet (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 3 of its 16 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 12 Jan 2025.

## Builds on (most cited first, 3 of 3)

- [ARC Prize 2024: Technical Report](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2412.04604/) (2024)
- [Superintelligence cannot be contained: Lessons from Computability Theory](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1607.00913/) (2016)
- [Do Large Language Models Understand Logic or Just Mimick Context?](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2402.12091/) (2024)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Creative and disruptive insights (CDIs), such as the development of the theory of relativity, have punctuated human history, marking pivotal shifts in our intellectual trajectory. Recent advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) have sparked debates over whether state of the art models possess the capacity to generate CDIs. We argue that the ability to create CDIs should be regarded as a significant feature of machine superintelligence (SI).To this end, we propose a practical test to evaluate whether an approach to AI targeting SI can yield novel insights of this kind. We propose the Einstein test: given the data available prior to the emergence of a known CDI, can an AI independently reproduce that insight (or one that is formally equivalent)? By achieving such a milestone, a machine can be considered to at least match humanity's past top intellectual achievements, and therefore to have the potential to surpass them.