PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Nikhil Srivastava

Nikhil Srivastava is a mathematician at UC Berkeley who helps organize First Proof, a project that measures AI systems on research-level mathematics. He earned degrees from Union College in 2005 and Yale in 2010, and in 2013 he and his co-authors Adam Marcus and Daniel Spielman gave a positive solution to the Kadison–Singer problem. That result won the 2014 George Pólya Prize, and he shared the 2021 Michael and Sheila Held Prize. He spent two and a half years at Microsoft Research India before moving to Berkeley in 2015. In September 2026 he became one of nine founding members of the Advisory Group on Mathematics and Artificial Intelligence, and as of October 2026 he is a professor in the Mathematics Department at UC Berkeley.

Works
79
Citations
2,807
h-index
22

Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 15 October 2026.

Timeline

  1. 2005–2010

    A Union degree and a Yale PhD

    He earns a bachelor's degree at Union College in 2005 and a computer-science PhD at Yale in 2010, advised by Daniel Spielman.

  2. 2013–2014

    Solving the Kadison–Singer problem

    In 2013, with Adam Marcus and Daniel Spielman, he provides a positive solution to the Kadison–Singer problem. The three of them win the 2014 George Pólya Prize for that result.

  3. 2015

    A move to Berkeley

    He spends two and a half years as a researcher at Microsoft Research India, then comes to Berkeley in 2015.

  4. 2021

    Held and Foias prizes

    He shares the 2021 Michael and Sheila Held Prize with two others. The American Mathematical Society recognizes him with the first Ciprian Foias Prize in Operator Theory.

  5. February 2026

    Organizing First Proof

    He helps organize First Proof, a project that measures AI systems on research-level mathematics. Its arXiv preprint is submitted in February 2026.

  6. September 2026

    An advisory group on AI mathematics

    The Advisory Group on Mathematics and Artificial Intelligence is announced in September 2026, with him among its nine founding members.

  7. As of October 2026

    Professor of mathematics at Berkeley

    He is a professor in the Mathematics Department at UC Berkeley.

Sources and credits

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  1. Nikhil Srivastava simons.berkeley.edu. Checked 15 October 2026.
  2. Nikhil Srivastava - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org. Checked 15 October 2026.
  3. Nikhil Srivastava Awarded 2014 George Pólya Prize – Asian Scientist Magazine asianscientist.com. Checked 15 October 2026.
  4. Alum wins top math prize | Union College union.edu. Checked 15 October 2026.
  5. Mathematician wins AMS award | Union College union.edu. Checked 15 October 2026.
  6. [2602.05192] First Proof arxiv.org. Checked 15 October 2026.
  7. Can AI Do Research Math? | Polylogues simons.berkeley.edu. Checked 15 October 2026.
  8. OpenAI Forms Math Advisory Group Amid 100+ Solved-Problems Claim | AI Weekly aiweekly.co. Checked 15 October 2026.