# The proof can pass while the requirement is wrong

[Canonical reading](https://escapemeridian.com/readings/wissner-gross-proving-the-wrong-problem)

Wissner-Gross asks how to detect a formally valid answer to a subtly changed problem. He questions whether open-world safety can be expressed compactly enough for a person to check.

Headline and sourced paraphrase by Escape Meridian. Inclusion is not endorsement.

## Original source

Moonshots with Peter Diamandis; transcript accessed through Podscripts · Interview, third-party transcript

Original source date: Sep 19, 2026 (2026-09-19).

Date basis: Episode publication verified on Apple Podcasts; recorded September 18, 2026.

Third-party transcript read on 2026-09-23. A host explicitly invites Alex before the objection; audio was not verified. Timestamp locates that transcript and is not a verified YouTube seek point.

The date this reading was added to Escape Meridian is not recorded.

- [Moonshots \#292 — Vlad Tenev on tokenization, AI and formal verification](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNBzLTLuLUo)
- [41:15–44:26 and 49:23–50:52 — Did the model formalize the intended problem?](https://podscripts.co/podcasts/moonshots-with-peter-diamandis/robinhoods-vlad-tenev-on-tokenizing-everything-openais-6-misalignment-reports-figures-robot-makes-beds-ep-292)

## Limits

A question about the reach of a method, not an empirical estimate of failure or a rejection of formal verification. Third-party transcript wording is provisional.


## Editorial test, not a stated concession

Test whether reviewers can detect deliberately altered requirements, including omissions, before accepting a formally verified result. Count misses and the time needed, alongside faults caught in the implementation.


## supports

His questions press the gap between the intended problem and its formal definition, while allowing that checking proofs is useful once the statement is right.

- [Supporting source](https://podscripts.co/podcasts/moonshots-with-peter-diamandis/robinhoods-vlad-tenev-on-tokenizing-everything-openais-6-misalignment-reports-figures-robot-makes-beds-ep-292)

## context

Lean documentation makes the role of axioms and formal definitions inspectable. This supports examining assumptions; it does not itself settle which requirement a person intended.

- [Supporting source](https://lean-lang.org/theorem_proving_in_lean4/Axioms-and-Computation/)

## Source and contributor context

Alexander Wissner-Gross · Moonshots co-host questioning Vlad Tenev

Physicist and computer scientist with published work on learning and human–robot teaming.

The objection identifies a specification problem; it does not prove that formal verification lacks value.

Declared interests are limited to the records linked here; absence of a record does not establish absence of an interest.

- [Author biography and publications](https://alexwg.org/)
- [His biography identifies AI company leadership, technology investment and advisory work.](https://alexwg.org/)

## Assumptions

Editorial reconstruction: errors in translating an intended requirement can matter even when the subsequent proof is valid.

Editorial reconstruction: meaningful human review remains possible for at least some consequential requirements.


## Source media

The video opens at the start. The passage times below refer to the third-party transcript, not verified video seek points.

- [Watch the episode · Moonshots with Peter Diamandis; transcript accessed through Podscripts](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNBzLTLuLUo)

## Terms and references

Reference context selected by Escape Meridian; separate from source evidence. Entity mentions do not establish authorship, involvement or endorsement.


## Alexander Wissner-Gross

Alexander Wissner-Gross is a scientist and entrepreneur who writes The Innermost Loop and discusses technology on Moonshots.

- [Explore this context](/entities/alexander-wissner-gross)
- [Reference](https://alexwg.org/)
- [Reference](https://theinnermostloop.substack.com/)
- [Reference](https://www.diamandis.com/podcast)
- [Reference](https://edge.org/response-detail/26181)

## Moonshots with Peter Diamandis

Moonshots with Peter Diamandis discusses emerging technologies and ambitious forecasts with builders, researchers and investors.

- [Explore this context](/entities/moonshots-podcast)
- [Reference](https://www.diamandis.com/podcast)

## Corrections and challenges

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