{"version":1,"type":"story","url":"https://digestai.news/story/stephen-a-weis-factors-rsa-896-with-anthropic-claude-assistance","json":"https://digestai.news/story/stephen-a-weis-factors-rsa-896-with-anthropic-claude-assistance.json","markdown":"https://digestai.news/story/stephen-a-weis-factors-rsa-896-with-anthropic-claude-assistance.md","slug":"stephen-a-weis-factors-rsa-896-with-anthropic-claude-assistance","headline":"Stephen A. Weis factors RSA-896 with Anthropic Claude assistance","summary":"Researcher Stephen A. Weis has factored RSA-896, a 270-decimal-digit semiprime, using Anthropic's Claude AI model. The achievement on September 19, 2026, pushed the public factoring record from 862 bits to 896 bits. This milestone comes just 16 days after Eric Lu of Cognition set the previous record of 862 bits on September 3, 2026, using Devin AI agents.\n\nBoth breakthroughs utilized the general number field sieve (GNFS) algorithm rather than quantum computing. The AI models acted as collaborators to optimize the classical approach, helping to navigate complex parameter spaces that typically require months of manual configuration by specialized teams. While Lu's effort consumed about 4,900 GPU-days at an estimated cost of $400,000, the compute cost for Weis's RSA-896 factoring has not been published.","keyPoints":["Stephen A. Weis factored the 896-bit RSA-896 semiprime on September 19, 2026, using Anthropic's Claude.","The achievement broke the previous 862-bit record set just 16 days prior by Eric Lu using Cognition's Devin.","Both records relied on optimizing the classical general number field sieve algorithm rather than quantum computing."],"whyItMatters":"The rapid succession of broken cryptographic records demonstrates how AI can optimize complex mathematical computations. While modern 2048-bit RSA encryption remains secure, this acceleration pressures organizations to phase out legacy 1024-bit keys.","category":{"slug":"research","name":"Research","url":"https://digestai.news/category/research"},"entities":{"companies":["Anthropic","Cognition"],"models":["Claude","Devin"],"people":["Stephen A. Weis","Eric Lu"]},"firstPublishedAt":"2026-09-18T17:00:00Z","updatedAt":"2026-09-18T17:00:00Z","sourceCount":1,"hasPrimarySource":false,"sources":[{"outlet":"cryptobriefing.com","title":"RSA-896 factored with AI assistance, pushing the public record to 896 bits","url":"https://cryptobriefing.com/rsa-896-factored-ai-assistance-public-record","publishedAt":"2026-09-18T17:00:00Z","type":"press","primary":false,"lead":true}],"sourceNotes":null,"discussions":[],"thread":null,"cite":{"text":"Digest AI, \"Stephen A. Weis factors RSA-896 with Anthropic Claude assistance\", 18 September 2026, https://digestai.news/story/stephen-a-weis-factors-rsa-896-with-anthropic-claude-assistance","publisher":"Digest AI","title":"Stephen A. Weis factors RSA-896 with Anthropic Claude assistance","datePublished":"2026-09-18T17:00:00Z","url":"https://digestai.news/story/stephen-a-weis-factors-rsa-896-with-anthropic-claude-assistance"},"generatedBy":"Written by Digest AI's editorial model from the linked sources; the sources are the record.","license":"Headlines, digests and key points are written by Digest AI and may be quoted with a link to the story page. Linked articles belong to their publishers. Terms: https://digestai.news/terms#reuse"}