Simons Institute for the Theory of Computing

1/2 Cryptanalysis has a rigor that machine learning lacks. “There would never be a paper accepted in crypto where the attack was ‘run the attack 5 times and it works [once].’ This is true of the world of ML." — @AnthropicAI's Nicholas Carlini at the Simons Institute. Video below.

2/2 Compared to cryptanalysis, “it’s not that hard to attack ML systems,” said Carlini, at the Simons Institute's workshop on Cryptography 10 Years Later: Obfuscation, Proof Systems, and Secure Computation Boot Camp. Video: simons.berkeley.edu/talks/nicholas…

Historic reunion of the three legendary figures who invented the BSS machine: @BlumLenore, Michael Shub and Steve Smale! @SimonsInstitute #SimonsLive #Smale95

2/2 "The field is moving...much faster than we know how to make things safe," said Carlini. Cryptographers/security experts have the analytical skills to help make ML safe. "Maybe we can keep pace to make things not get any worse than they are now." Video: simons.berkeley.edu/talks/nicholas…

1/2 "We need help!" @AnthropicAI's Nicholas Carlini called for cryptanalysis experts to join efforts to make ML safe, at the Simons Institute's workshop on Cryptography 10 Years Later: Obfuscation, Proof Systems, and Secure Computation Boot Camp Video: simons.berkeley.edu/talks/nicholas…

Computational Complexity is the wrong measure for LRMs (as it was for LLMs)--think distributional distance instead #SundayHarangue (yes, we're back!) I have argued in the past that computational complexity is the wrong measure/metaphor for understanding how standard LLMs do on…

What's obfuscation in computing? @UCLA's Amit Sahai jokingly began his tutorial with a "gruesomely human" analogy, at the Simons Institute's workshop on Cryptography 10 Years Later: Obfuscation, Proof Systems, and Secure Computation Boot Camp. Video here: simons.berkeley.edu/talks/amit-sah…

Next week at the Simons Institute, a workshop on Proofs. Join us! simons.berkeley.edu/workshops/proo…

Quantum Summer Cluster Workshop #SimonsQuantum

Harnessing factorization – beyond its use to crack #encryption - to evaluate the power of a #quantumcomputer. My latest blog: scieye.wordpress.com/2025/06/07/bey… Many thanks to @seyoonragavan for chatting with me about it!

Catch up on the talks from this week's ongoing Quantum Summer Cluster Workshop. Register to watch the livestream and get early access to the talk recordings. simons.berkeley.edu/workshops/quan… #SimonsQuantum