OpenAI Features Professor Chi-Kwan "CK" Chan's Use of AI Tools for Black Hole Research

OpenAI recently visited the University of Arizona and the Arizona Radio Observatory’s 12-meter radio telescope on Kitt Peak to produce a short documentary featuring Professor Chi-Kwan “CK” Chan, Lead of the Theoretical Astrophysics Program’s (TAP) Computation & Data Initiative. The film showcases CK’s work using AI to discover new supercomputer algorithms for simulating black holes.

 

The documentary follows the Event Horizon Telescope’s effort to capture the first video of a black hole. It also highlights how CK is using agentic AI tools such as OpenAI’s Codex to accelerate scientific discovery. In the film, Codex generates ten candidate algorithms for a challenging scientific computing problem in just a few minutes. CK’s team then scales this approach by using AI agents to propose and rigorously test thousands of candidate algorithms, identifying new methods that can accelerate black hole simulations by orders of magnitude.

 

CK also plans to bring the OpenAI Forum to the University of Arizona this fall. The event will feature on-campus talks and discussions on the future of AI and scientific discovery, as well as a visit to one of Arizona’s telescopes. Keep an eye on the TAP website for upcoming announcements.