It seems that neural networks are working technological wonders. Not long ago, they struggled with even the simplest tasks in our competitions, but now they are reaching new heights that cannot be overlooked.
There is reason to believe that progress will continue, and we can expect further advancements in neural networks within the realm of programming competitions.
For this reason, we are explicitly limiting the use of AI-based systems (such as various models like GPT, Gemini, Gemma, Llama, Claude, and others) for solving programming problems.
However, we recognize that AI can be a valuable tool for learning and coding assistance, so we aim to establish clear boundaries for its use.
Application of this Rule:
This rule applies strictly to in-contest participation. This includes both registered contestants and out-of-competition participants in any rated Codeforces round. If a round is unrated and this is explicitly stated in the round announcement or rules, the rule will also apply. Outside of such contests, AI tools may be used freely for practice, learning, or non-competitive problem-solving.
Permitted AI Use:
- Translation of Problem Statements: You may use AI-based systems to translate problem statements, but you must ensure that the system does not interpret or summarize the statement. Only direct translations are allowed.
- Code Completion Tools (e.g., Copilot): AI-based code completion systems may be used, but only for syntax and minor coding suggestions. Using them to generate the core logic or algorithms for solving problems is not permitted.
Prohibited AI Use:
You may not input the problem statement, its summary, any excerpt, or a sub-problem into an AI-based system to receive ready-made code or natural language descriptions of the solution.
You are forbidden from using AI to diagnose or resolve errors based on system feedback (e.g., after receiving a rejected verdict like "Runtime error on test 1" or similar, you are prohibited from asking AI-based systems to help you fix the issue). The use of AI tools that assist with problem understanding, logic creation, or decision-making in a way that substitutes your own reasoning is strictly disallowed.
Guidelines for Proper Use:
- Using AI to generate simple boilerplate code (e.g., input/output functions) is allowed.
- Relying on AI to generate algorithmic logic or the key solution is strictly prohibited.
- If you're unsure whether a particular AI use violates the rules, please consult the competition organizers.
Cheating Detection:
This rule allows us to continue identifying cheating incidents as we did before the AI era. If two contestants’ codes match and the matched code does not exist publicly on the internet prior to the competition round, this will be considered evidence of cheating. This method ensures that AI tools are not used inappropriately to bypass individual effort and maintains the integrity of fair competition.
We will closely monitor the development of AI technologies and will adapt the rules as necessary while balancing fair competition and the benefits of AI-assisted learning.
Omg iam terrified and scared, are we dying?
Yes
Maybe soon
Sonner than we thought
Faster than we live
Just like that...gone~
with the wind. my baby's gone with the wind...
ahaa
sure
we live we love we die
... to AI
:skull:
does he know the Name of the Wind?
just to continue the thread
i also
And with this
We are officially finished
or may be not!!!
or maybe yes!
nope
lets continue it..
As you wish
nothing wrong with contributing 2 years later right?
Of course!
Just for the sake of humanity.... continuing this
To be continued...
To the end of time...
Till the end of eternity...
and on and on and beyond...
, until all is gone
and only mcdonald's 4 piece chicken mcnuggets are left
im crying lol
stupid wool
hail germany
guys when are you coming for the meet up? I have already arrived in heaven`...Lol<_>/
maybe in time, ill rebirth as you, i hope you lived a good life
I THEN SHALL BE REBORN AS A HIGHLY INTELLIGENT SPECIES(that can spell chargogagoggmanchargauganabanamaug i thinnk)
*_*
i never posted it was my account hacked??
Of course it should. Many people copy and paste the code and change it to another programming language with ChatGPT and submit it. Many people create logic using Direct Problem Statement ChatGPT and submit it by modifying it. You have taken a good initiative.
I mean, we are all dying in a way
yes
No, we're not dying. Everything will be okay—take a deep breath and try to stay calm. -- gpt 4o
just AI engineer still live :D
the importance of learning programming
Yes
Japanese Tourist
And how will you determine if someone has used AI or ChatGPT? How can you distinguish between a logic that was given by ChatGPT and not an original thought process of an individual? Like, I support no cheating but how can you determine it? If someone does that, how will you know? Because there is a standard approach for most of the problems, so anyone after getting a hint to the approach can write a code on their own, isn't it cheating?
good point
I think that at the very least, for comments in the code and/or emoji and namespacing, decisions of a certain number of participants can be rejected, and proctoring should be included in the regulations for serious rounds
i concider us dead already.
i think there have to be many more adaptions required to the kind of audience we have in codeforces! but one must not forget ethics so please follow what mike said !!
Of course it should. Many people copy and paste the code and change it to another programming language with ChatGPT and submit it. Many people create logic using Direct Problem Statement ChatGPT and submit it by modifying it. You have taken a good initiative.
What's wrong with changing language until the logic stays the same?
I think that it could be problematic for many reasons:
I thought codeforces aimed at testing your problemsolving Skills and Not your translation speed. I usually use Python as it only needs a Little Bit of Syntax compared to other languages. What do i do if i have a O(n) = n runtime but it is still to slow? Of course i change to c++ in Order to solve it. Translating it manualy would give me a very Bad Rating as it would give me an enourmous Programming time penalty. It cannot be, that you are restricted to a handfull of languages if you want to have a good rating.
It's Great
However what if the AI generated different codes for the same problem statement? This will be really concerning, and is almost impossible to detect.
The scary part is, it can already do that, if not on the first try you can ask it to do so...
We are also unable to determine whether you are solving the problems on your own or generating all the ideas with a large team. Indeed, in the context of online competitions, we cannot enforce all the rules strictly, but I believe we have always done what is within our power and moved forward by continuing to hold contests. I hope that the Codeforces community remains the same as before – with a significant number of participants who follow the rules and do not constantly look for loopholes to break them.
Will we be able to implement a system in which, if someone tries to switch tabs in the browser then it will be detected? Do this will help because on codeforces custom input page, dashboard, different problem etc. have different urls.
cheaterss can cheat and WILL cheat unless u sit with them and monitor their each and every move. theres noo denying that
you got banned for cheating what a shame xd
This applies to virtual participation. Please add this in terms.
What if we generate templates to well known problems that we haven't already added in our library?
I did once consider using AI such as GPT to help improving my CP performing. But then, I realized that "hey, if I could use AI to improve my rates in competition, that also means those experts could also apply the AI in their works :( In the end, the outcome of the game still depend on our own real strength. So, I realize that I still need work on my own to get improving.
You can know that the participants are not generating all the ideas with a large team because people on this site don't have friends .
But sir with your due respect, in my clg ik one guy who definitely cheat and we know that for sure but we can't do anything one of my friend in one contest messaged the contributor of that contest shared his code it was clearly AI generated but nothing happened against him.
i want to say that codeforces should have a portal to report such user as we can only collective solve this issue, as the problem is really big and complex.
AI may generate different codes for the same problem, but diverse solutions aren't inherently bad
cheaters not gonna read all this !
Can't we use AI to find out if AI generated the code? Because different models or even the same one might give different versions of the same code
vim users can ignore this
What if some knowledgeable cheaters change the AI code to their style, after understanding the solution.
I don't think a knowledgeable participant who is able to understand the AI solution would cheat in the first place, though.
you are so acitve in comments……
I think that even without understanding the essence of the solution, a participant can very easily change it so that it looks different from the others. Changing the names of variables, functions, code style doesn't seem to be a big problem even for a beginner in programming. In the end, I think that the future of competitive programming sites depends solely on the trustworthiness of the participants. Fighting LLM in such things seems to be a lost cause from the start(
The plag detector can easily judge if only var/func name is changed.
alright
From Prohibited AI Use,
"You may not input the problem statement, its summary, any excerpt, or a sub-problem into an AI-based system to receive ready-made code"
how is using AI to retrieve code for, say, Dijkstra's algorithm, different from copying such code from a ready-made template file on my machine? I know that many regular contestants do the latter.
Dijkstra's algorithm is hardly any subproblem.
mans got no chill
You have no idea how many "no chill" replies I want to post to some of the comments in this thread that I'm restraining myself from writing...
Do you mean that using AI to generate Dijkstra during a contest would be allowed without providing any details from the problem?
That’s a code similar to what already exists. I think it doesn’t violate the rules.
How will this be enforced?
That's the million dollar question.
Billion*
day 1 of waiting until AI is ranked higher than me before quitting
didn't they already have an AI get IMO gold, they surely have some private AI that is better than us at codeforces
++
I think people can easily change the code style once they get the intuition of the solution from the AI, and also it is very hard to find cheaters simply from D2A or B because of low implementation required.
On the other hand, I suggest we can add another guideline regarding problem ideas and statements for future contest, where the writers/testers should first give them to AI and see if the AI can solve it, and try to improve the statement based on that feedback.
On one hand, I don't have an alternate solution, but won't this just give the llms the best edge cases to train on? I just don't think that it's a reliable long term solution, if the AIs keep improving.
You can use API's of the AIs, which at least claim to be not used for training purposes, maybe it can even be integrated to polygon...
What if the AI says the code is made by an AI but it actually is not???
they can even get the solution from gpt and rewrite it,maybe only silly guy that copy from gpt will be found
So,how did we discover that someone was using AI generated code
today's contest AB and possibly C are going to be chaotic 200+ newbies ranked higher than tourist first 5 minutes cant wait
What about using it to transform my Python code to cpp, in the problems that contains hashing or orderedset, I use them in this case after making my Python code so my cpp solution looks as it is AI only, even I wrote all of its logic
Can't you just, use cpp in the first place? It's not like competitive programming in python is getting better anytime soon
I agree with that, but I am writing too fast in Python and very comfortable with it, and I use it in my work, so using CPP is not that EZ for me, but I will try more, thanks too much :)
just recently openAI announced their new tool o1. with so many tools out there, its would be difficult to detect AI generated Codes. I am really looking forward to this new era of AI in the field of Problem Solving and how different organization react to this.
How on earth would cheating detection detect ChatGPT code? (when you can prompt it to obfuscate the solution in some way)
I come back to CF from time to time to solve some interesting problems but I've 0 doubts that there are tons of cheaters in here(majority from one particular country — won't give a name).
It may be time for a new platform, very soon the internet will turn to shit because of AI. (if it hasn't already)
..k klm
My two cents:
I'm a beginner, started codeforces to improve my own problem solving ability.
The fact that AI models like OpenAI's o1 have just been announced to be solving at a rating of almost CM is scary, because I know people will use this just to cheat. But at the end of the day, what matters in my opinion is, whether I myself am capable of solving problems or not.
It's impossible to stop cheating in online contests, at the end of the day the only thing we can do is accept that cheaters will exist, but we do CP to enjoy solving problems ourselves... That is one of the prime reasons of why I will keep my practice going to be good at CP, and not stop just because cheaters exist. Hope I reach specialist soon! (Just started grinding)
Could you (Codeforces) cooperate with, for example, OpenAI, So if there is a contest, ChatGPT will be very limited in solving problems (like any question related to the contest's problems)
Even if the management of sports programming sites manage to reach an agreement with the largest LLM developers (which is almost unrealistic), it will only delay the main problem. After all, in the near future LLMs will be optimized and the computing power of home GPUs will be increased to such a level that anyone will be able to run an acceptable level of LLM on their local PC. I think it will take 2-3 years.
A more feasible solution would be to modify the Codeforces website. Whenever a contest starts, the platform could enforce a full-screen mode that prevents users from switching tabs or opening other tabs (except the custom invocation tab), might help ensure fairness during contests.
So does this mean that I can use AI to get templates for algorithms and DS? For example, I want to use FFT, Dinics, or some obscure algorithms that I don't know how to code, and they are available online, but I'm too lazy to search them up. Is that forbidden, considering how you can achieve the same thing with some (possibly not quick) Google search?
literally,yes. this is actually same to use templates you prepared in text file.
Its a very important thing to do seeing current increasing cheating scenerios. But I hope the strict language used here should apply on the implementation as well and people using such tools are actually removed, rather than just scaring them . Hope a fair competition is established.!!!
this is a Prisoners’ Dilemma.
its hard to detect cheating,so most cheaters wont be punished.
so people who obey the rules will suffer losses,all they can do is to pray others to obey the rules too.
What is "wise" in joining cheaters? Do you feed your family based on contest performance? I can't believe the sh*t I'm reading lol
is it hard to find out that its an irony? Don't be so irritable bro…… what i mean is that in a Prisoners’ Dilemma,more and more people will choose to harm others and get benefits for theirselves,so if we just expect everyone to consciously abide by the rules,its impossible
we need more effective ways we cannot rely solely on people consciously following the rules
yes I do good get bowl of rice wife happy, do bad get no bowl of rice, wife mad
I am glad to see the release of this rule. As the leader of a training team, I have previously removed a member who has been using AI to do problems
what about the cheaters that using telegram groups to publish the answers ?
Some loopholes still exist, but I don't think they are a problem for any of us. Yes, some of us might feel demotivated by seeing someone else's rating go up (even if they might be cheating).
However, at the end of the day, we are here to sharpen our problem-solving skills, programming abilities, critical thinking, and more. If someone uses AI technologies instead of their own brain, I believe they’re the ones truly at a loss.
A rating is simply a reflection of your skills. If I don’t have the rating, it’s because I don’t yet have the skills—it’s that simple.
For those who think about cheating in a contest, you should ask yourself: Are you here for the rating or to improve yourself?
About that “If two contestant codes match and the matching code is not publicly available online prior to the competition round, this will be considered evidence of cheating.” How likely is it that there is an error in the assessment since most people study from identical sources and it is possible that there is no cheating but the imp is very similar?
Suggestion: Make the problems uncopyable, and for translation, you can add some translation tools, etc.
The crux of the problem can be typed and MacOS preview gives the text through a screenshot.
It’s not a complete solution, obviously, but I believe it will significantly reduce cheating.
you can input a screenshot sraight into GPT
I guess there is no need for screenshots during a contest and it can be disabled for the contest page or adding some features which make it hard for AI to detect texts in the screenshots or something similar.
That's not possible, it's OS level feature.
To block screenshot's, you have to access the display server, which can be dwm.exe on windows, whatever macos uses, or X11 or Wayland on linux. Some of these may have a protocol to block screenshots, other's may not, and, accessing api's of these display servers from a browser with your javascript code is hard because browsers generally isolate themselves, and display servers are written to be safe, since if someone that's not privileged accesses them that's pretty bad for the user. Also, people may just use a virtual teletype device, by pressing CTRL+ALT+ a number on linux, and use a terminal based browser (which actually works for codeforces because it is an old school website that works with terminal browsers), and use the print screen button to actually print the entire page(what print screen was supposed to do, printing the entire teletype to a printer), and the printer can be a capture device. you can also just take a photo of the problem statement i guess. so, it is both impractical and impossible to do what you asked.
Extra to your comment: one could actually do CP in a separate VM, and screenshot the VM from the main machine (the blocking in the VM cannot alter the true machine most of the time — correct me if I'm wrong, in case kernel programs could do worse).
There is also the fact that people can screenshot with a camera, or use a capture card, both of which are simply impossible to block.
As I used both Python and C++ (which I only learned a little recently), is it illegal to translate my Python code to C++ to pass the time limit or something like that? Is it considered as a "sub-problem" ?
Something like from submission 1 to submission 2. The second one is generated by AI.
I also have the same doubt as I use python. Also, if a problem requires us to count the number of inversions in a permutation or modular inverse(last Div3 F),however the key part of the problem involves some other interesting observations , can we use AI to generate those standard parts as the solutions for them are already on the internet? If it is not allowed, what if we have those AI generated solutions before the contest as templates? I don't see any arguments for why we should prohibit the use of AI to have templates before the contest as it is just equivalent to copying something from the internet(cp algorithms etc). So, in that case, How can someone possibly differentiate between AI generated code during the contest and before the contest?
I also have the same question. As a python programmer, it is quite common to encounter the case, that this problem get TLE in python, but can pass with the code that have exactly the same logic in c++.
In my opinion, it should be OK. Since you don't use AI to help you think how to do the problem or debug. The logic is the same, and you also have your own complete implementation, you don't use AI to make any "short cut" for this problem. What's more, it didn't have any relationship with the problem statement.
Actually it's the problem setter's duty to make the problem "language fair", that is, if your solution time complexity is exactly what the problem setter expect, you should pass whatever language you choose. However in the real competition it is very hard to achieve that. Using AI is a way to make up and it should be allowed.
I think a distinction here is whether you have included any part of the problem statement or its derivatives.
It may take a long way but this is a good start.Support!
To ensure, that all participants are real human, an not just AI's, I suggest starting a trend, where you have to post a selfie of yourself, holding a piece of paper with current round number and your handle. This way we can be sure, that participant is not OpenAI bot
I'll start:
Is it comfortable to write code using four fingers?
In my opinion, if Codeforces can provide its own online IDE and monitor the actions of users (Like an app called Wenjuanxing in China, which doesn't allow users to leave the window), I think this issue will be solved well.
basically making any app for codeforces will open many possibilities , monitoring , hardware bans , vpn detection , anti cheat but they always refuse making an app for contests
But what if a contestant has multiple devices and using second device to cheat. Obviously, this might consume a lot of time but solving a problem late could still be better than those who couldn't solve.
You are right. I haven't considered this situation yet.
I have considered about whether recording contestants' behaviors by using a camera can tackle it, but it seems that the contestants can cheat in other ways.
Thus, online contests are impossible to prevent cheating. Maybe whether you cheat in online contests only depends on whether you want to cheat.
This is terrible. I would immediately quit if this happened.
I'm willing to tolerate things like this for job interviews or university exams. But Codeforces is very different. It's not an interview or exam, it's a hobby activity. It's supposed to be enjoyable.
I have yet to see a decent online "IDE". How many of these online code editors even have a functional debugger? What about running scripts for stress testing? And none of this prevents a participant from just looking up answers from their phones or something. This would break the experience of legitimate participants while doing very little to prevent cheating.
I have realized that this will do more harm than good. Sorry.
definitely sounds like a thing China would do
Unpopular opinion : we need verified accounts on codeforces to participate officially in a contest, this may not solve the problem completely but may reduce cheating counts.
But people do use alts to not hamper their main account rating or to practise problems. so verification will like also affect creating alts .
Even the concept of alt accounts is not right. I think having unrated registration is a better solution.
Does that mean if someone uses chatgpt to write a common function like sieve (available on geeksforgeeks and cpalgorithms), will it go against the rules?
bruh i had asked GPT to solve a recent 1900 rated problem and it solved it first try on o1-preview (it was technically 3rd try, but if I had asked GPT to solve it in C++ originally, it would have been first try since I just asked it after to convert it)
hopefully CF detection system is getting better since GPT is
I think, some contest monitoring tools could be launched.
this is probably the most demotivating thing I ever heard from CF. too hard to see it actually happen..
I think public interest on CP in general would stop here. and there will be huge decline in CF active contestants as exactly the same happened to Chess or GO
I think your system should check more on, common patterns in AI-generated code, monitor super-fast submission times, look for unexplained spikes in problem-solving ability, and also monitor browser copy-paste logs. Or better, you can collaborate with GPT so that it doesn't answer any contest-related problems during the contest time.
I don't understand why the f they are investing Billions of dollars to make SWE useless, why not build something using AI to prevent problems like Global Warming or Climate change or Better lifestyle stuff or manufacturing.
Because otherwise, how are they gonna make money/fame to prove that AI is good.
There is no deterministic way to tell how much global warming has been affected by AI or change in lifestyle, since there is no certain metric to do so. Also, these changes require a lot of time.
Instead building a model which solves IOI problems and surpasses gold medal points, the results can be immediately seen. Or something like "AI reaches 1800 rating" has a certain measure (in this case rating in codeforces) to show how good it is.
This is just an easy way to make money and get in the headlines. No one other than CF participants will know/care about the fact that we are struggling with this developments. Most people in support of this will say that "don't use AI in contests simple" or "just switch to any other development related field instead of stupidly doing CP."
So that all the SWE start to work on problems like Global Warming or Climate change or Better lifestyle stuff or manufacturing./s
Well from company perspective it make sense, they just want to reduce labour cost and improve efficiency, something industry do since centuries.
There is no evidence that current large language models (LLMs) can solve problems that they have not been directly trained on. Systems like AlphaCode are not accessible to regular users, and their true capabilities remain unclear. Techniques like Chain of Thought (COT) do not enable models to "think" in a human sense; they merely rewrite the input text to try to fit it within the training data distribution.
For example, LLMs struggle with basic arithmetic. If they provide a correct answer, it is because they have been specifically trained on that sum. To break the model, and get a wrong answer, you just need to add more numbers to the equation.
If you use a COT technique to break down a sum, such as:
123456 + 123456 + 123456to something like
the model only needs to identify pairs of digits, like (6, 6 -> 2) and (5, 5 -> 0) (technically pairs of these as you need to take into account the carry). However, this does not mean that LLMs can reliably add numbers, as their probabilistic nature often leads to incorrect answers. For more details, you can watch this presentation at https://youtu.be/d_bdU3LsLzE?t=1726 (the timestamp corresponds to the slide where this is discussed).
MikeMirzayanov while rules need to be established and enforced, discussions about the hypothetical power of LLMs only contribute to fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD). To provide the community with a clearer understanding, I propose creating an official LLM account managed by Codeforces. This would allow the LLM to participate in contests, helping competitors know what to expect and providing data to study potential cheating behaviors.
Rating is just a number. We enjoy the contest itself.
I agree with this. This will ensure fair competition, and we enthusiasts will feel validated on the rank we deserve.
what if they use the AI-generated logic and modify it to make it distinct? You should think about this too...
I'm also thinking about this problem. In some competitions that prohibit the use of AI to generate codes, some players still use AI to generate codes and make some modifications without being detected by the anti-cheating system, which affects the fairness of the competition.
I am in favor of this new rule.
Learning CP is of course NOT meaningless. LLMs are using the power of all the human-beings and super computers, but you are just using your mind and wisdom of the human without huge database. You actually already won.
Sometimes the code in python does not submit and throws TLE error, I use AI tools to quickly convert my code to cpp. Is that a violation? If the logic is thought myself.
Even Though still hard to know , if people solve by their own , or they use an LLM for a solution or ideas .
Take a Deep Breath, Delete CF account
Isn't it possible to create an online ide where individuals can have their own boilerplate code for their own accounts, but during a contest if they open any other window or tab then it will mark the account as a cheater. I know it is harsh but having something like this on top of already comparing the codes of participants can be great for deterring cheaters.
It just creates trouble for honest participants, while those who really want to cheat can easily use two devices to avoid detection.
competitive prompt engineer VS competitive programmer It's gonna be fun
Now That's a good news
Even though the rules have been laid, those who need that stick/support, they will use AI. And to be honest, it's ok. It's better to adjust to changes. Because neither we could stop cheating in pre AI error, no we can now.
It's true.I have a friend.He always use AI to slove problems.I am angry.But now,he can't use AI.I am happy.
It sounds nice.
How about coding style consistency check by AI?
It's great.
What about those who are selling the solution by money?
AI took their jobs ez
However, AI is stupid in some situations, because my AI can just solve *800 (:
Can I do this: feed the solution(from me) into the AI and ask the AI to come up with the code.
I think it is covered by
Relying on AI to generate algorithmic logic or the key solution is strictly prohibited.
It's me generate logic and key solution. not AI.
You're really stretching the definition of "key solution" to somehow not include the code itself.
281156553
https://mirror.codeforces.com/contest/2005/submission/281170560
same person looks fishy too.
Can we like ask for segment tree code to AI
It's funny how a lot of people now act like this is the approaching end of programming competitions when programming competitions on higher level have been falling off for years. Only the 2 main online ones, IOI and ICPC, are going strong as ever, but there used to be so much more both purely online and with onsite finals. Topcoder is dead, dead and buried. Onsite competitions disappeared, most importantly GCJ which had been moving in stupid directions for a while, but was still significant. There used to be Codechef, CSAcademy, Hackerearth, Hackerrank, random niche sites doing regular contests. It's all gone, transformed from problem solving sport into directly job-focused stuff as companies realised that algorithmic skills aren't an important indicator. Companies used to have their cups on CF or their own sites etc, now it's just an occassional FB cup.
Since the start of 2023, Atcoder ARC+ averages 1 round per 2 weeks, CF div1+ slightly more with about half being combined rounds. Codechef does a round rated for all once every few months. That's pretty much it.
I don't even mind that competitive programming never took off as a bigger sport and will likely slowly fade into obscurity. At its core, it's just an ancient practice of a bunch of people challenging each other with problems to solve with pen and paper, but internet helped both with spreading problem statements to a lot more people and letting everyone evaluate correctness of their solution without any need for manual supervision. At least that won't have an opportunity to be ruined by money, like many other things.
The field that's impacted the most by unauthorised help, whether it's human help or ChatGPT, is online tests for university and for hiring. That's where the AI results actually matter as even a low-skill cheater can reach much further than before with minimum effort. Be glad you're not forced to deal with that! Instead you can just open a problem and try to figure out a solution on your own, either timing it using virtual participation or just casually in your free time. No o1ioi-maxi model can take your ability (or inability) to solve it from you.
I would agree bro. My graduation just completed this year and placement season ended.I am so frustated by how cheaters without even knowing how to run a for loop got placed in product based companies by using premium version of gpts and solving in groups.While i honestly gave my interview and coding rounds and got placed in such a low paying company.
It seems like you're implying that competitive programming is dying. While that may be true in some regards, it seems to me that the overall general interest in algorithmic problem solving is increasing.
You can see that codeforces.com on google trends has been steadily getting more clicks in the last 5 years.
The same is true for leetcode, which has exploded in popularity recently.
Do you agree that the general interest in algorithmic problem solving is increasing, or do you think that these two websites might not fully represent the whole story?
On the Leetcode main page, the first stuff that pops out is:
It's focused on basic learning or interviews and that's the real interest that drives most sites, not "general interest in algorithmic problem solving". It's also a cause of CF's popularity as many people join to learn some of what's ultimately just basic stuff on which actual hardcore problem solving is built.
No, I don't think this represents actual deep interest. Going deep down the algorithmic programming rabbit hole will always be a very niche thing done by a small group since it requires far, far too much effort for any limited benefits it can bring. Taking your reply below as an example, most people only put in effort if they can spare the time, but there are plenty more important things in life. The fraction of programming jobs that algorithmic programming beyond basics is useful in is extremely small. It makes sense to move on to treating this as crossword solving, a very casual, low-effort hobby.
If there was big money in the competitive part of competitive programming, we'd see more people committing to it because it'd be affordable. There were hints it could've become something like that in the last decade — as I mentioned company cups — but those are waning and companies become more focused on that basic, interview level of problems as they probably realised that solving hard algorithmic problems isn't a necessary skill and it's better to focus on combo of basic coding + soft skills as a better performance indicator. Everything's moving in a consistent commercially viable direction when you think about it.
How many people really keep on playing after passing a job interview? That's the relevant statistic.
I feel like from now on you should make it so, when a contest is running, you can't select and copy the problem's statement. This will make it much more cumbersome to paste the statement into chatgpt and I feel like it will disinsetivise a lot of cheaters from now on.
haiz
Is there way to prohibit copying the text of problem from browser? As I know such way doesn`t exist, but you may be aware of it
Of course it is possible (barring OCR), but I believe it shouldn't be implemented anyway.
Are we allowed to use it as a knowledge source? For example, if I forget what the SCC algorithm is(I know usage), can I ask the AI to briefly explain it (and maybe provide code for an abstract SCC algorithm)? Or can I ask it to tell me the best way to implement DSU?
Is it possible to use translators from one programming language to another? For example, I wrote a task in Python, it doesn't work because of TL. AI rewrote it in C++ and it was solved
Dear Sir, Your new system goes wrong judge. I didn't any copy code in last Div 4 (971) problem C. but it skipped by your system. And it is very common that two code become same, because some easy problem should be same logic and approach and code would be the same also. I think it should need to improve more.
Great operation! It strongly prevents cheating and unfairness to other people who work by themselves. The same thing happened on other OJs too much to feel unfair. It's an excellent initiative.
Please clarify on if the language translations is allowed. (Preferably, also everything I wrote in https://mirror.codeforces.com/blog/entry/133990)
It will have very serious implications for non-C++ users. I just encountered one such instance during practice: 281503503 is translated easy pass but it is very hard to fit the exact same idea in kotlin 281502452, even with stupid lots of things like radix sort.
To clarify, I am not saying it should be allowed. I think it should NOT be allowed. But a clarification, one way or another, is important.
Perhaps it's time to implement AI-based monitoring of user actions to ensure fair contests.
To prevent people from using ChatGPT o1-preview to achieve high scores during competitions on the Codeforces site, how about politely requesting OpenAI to impose functionality restrictions so that it doesn't solve current contest problems?
If human progress comes to a halt, AI's data will also become corrupted, right? I think OpenAI might consider this point.
I don't know what the purpose of using AI is. Rating does not match your abilities, so you need AI to help you 'progress' even more. This is a meaningless vicious cycle.
Can anybody tell which profile they (OpenAI) used for testing their new model and if they used it at all?
I never imagined that this day would come so quickly
Hello! Just curious in light of this situation will we be allowed to use chatgpt to convert our code into kotlin for the upcoming kotlin heroes. Not sure who contest organizers are for this contest so i asked here
Thanks!
ok!
i dont quite understand the significance of using AI in competitions,i can't think of any benefits
btw I triggered cloudflare while writing this comment:(
It seems that this article was written by AI.
Skill Development: avoiding AI can encourage developers to deepen their coding skills, as they must rely on their own problem-solving abilities and creativity.
Understanding Code: writing code manually fosters a better understanding of algorithms, data structures, and design patterns, which can be lost when relying on AI-generated solutions.
Quality Assurance: human oversight can enhance code quality, as developers can ensure that solutions meet specific project requirements and maintain high standards of readability and maintainability.
Last thing i pretty confused about how to check real people coding and AI coding?
Real people coding:
AI coding:
Ah because it have long variable name right?
Long variable name(such as "the_count_of_numbers"),all comments,usually Python
WTF! Why not make the contests harder and harder and recommend that everyone use AI?
I understand why people are downvoting but my point is making "harder" problems means problems LLMs can not solve. I see LLMs can sometimes solve 1800-rated problems but struggle with 1000-rated problems this usually does not happen with humans. One possibility is it can map the 1800-rated problem to another similar problem available on the internet due to its strong language capabilities but it still doesn't have the logical ability to develop the algorithm. My point is why make a strong rule against it? Another contest can be introduced that allows AI use and problem-setters are expected to test problems with AI models and ensure they can not develop the logic for it.
Another problem with this rule is how it will be enforced. Do you really think an LLM can generate solutions to a highly rated problem but will not be able to change the code enough that it is considered to be written by another person? Also, developing the algorithm is the 90% hard part. Even a basic programming course will make you good enough to write the code once you know the algorithm of the solution. What is stopping people from just getting the algorithm from the LLMs and writing their own code?
Cheating in a contest by giving in groups is just fraud plain and simple so people do not do it to not spoil the sanctity of the contest but cheating using smart prompt engineering doesn't nearly "feel" as unethical. In my opinion, a lot of people will do it and it will only demotivate people who are here to actually learn.
for the same question it takes 15 mins for humans of the same level,but it takes 3 secs to summarize using AI,so what is the significance of your competition reading questions? why don't you let AI summarize the content of the exam paper for you during the exam? as you put it, the world's papers should become increasingly difficult because AI can be more easily used
btw not being able to understand the questions indicates that your skills are not high enough,which is different from the inconvenience of doing the questions for you. just use AI for solving problems, using AI for competitions only shows where your skills are not high enough
what if my code fails due to python constraints and i simply ask gpt to change my code to cpp.will it be legal?
AI is dump, it cant do anything
My rating is 1064.
Instead of prohibiting it, have you considered introducing a separate scoreboard for people who are allowed to use AI?
Can I use AI(chatGPT / gemini or etc..) for getting some more input/output of a problem in live contest?? You know, there are some tricky input in a problem statement that are not included in the input area. But, if I use AI(chatGPT / gemini or etc..) to get those tricky input and output, it will help me to submit more accurate code. Can I use AI in live contest to do this??
Just wonder if this rule incites any change on cftool accessing codeforces? Because I've come across issue on that. the cftool is now reading the page that composed by js and only available in browser where the js content would get evaluated.
I wonder how can I get my cftool work again.
But how to distinguish?
Saying "Guys, please behave!!" doesn't help. My prediction is that we will have entirely new types of competitive coding platforms for the AI era. People will use AI to generate code in their job, be it engineering or research. The question is what does the "new hard skill" look like.
I have a question. Does utilizing AI to get new sample test cases fall under the prohibited use of the problem statement?
Yes
Bro thinks AI can solve codeforces question
That's because it can. And it has. There are AI cheaters in almost every contest.
Say I wanted to implement binary search somewhere in my code, can I use AI to generate the code for binary search and copy paste on to my code? Would that fall under cheating? Isn't this just like using libraries?
No, that's cheating.
you can use usaco guide for this purpose since it is published code.
Sir my friend whose username is Krishna_njr10 on codeforces did not cheat anyone's code but his code matches with other person code in Round 1023 div 2 he is innocent please unblock him
s
What is the original intention? If you can figure this out, then it doesn't matter anymore.
Enjoy the process of solving problems and programming happily ！！！
how will u distinguish btw? cuz normally the soln i write would be similar to what a llm would write as its common that most qs have one straightforwad algo to follow, so both i and the llm would do that. how do u distinguish??
I’m really sorry to post this here, but I need some help. In the most recent Div 1 + Div 2 contest, my main account rJ_ysenM was banned immediately after my first “skip”. I believe it’s a mistake because I did not cheat or engage in any suspicious behavior. In fact, I even ran the problems through several AI language models and got totally different solutions from mine.
I understand that skipping some easy problems and go solve harder problems right away can look suspicious, but if you review my contest history, you’ll see I only do that in topics I’m deeply familiar with (primarily graphs and combinatorics).
I realize you may have strict anti-cheat measures in place, which is why I’m reaching out directly now. I’ve already contacted Mike but haven’t heard back, so a friend suggested I try here or reach out to KAN (which i also did but i know both of them are busy)
I was so close to reaching Master and I’d really appreciate any help restoring my account. Thank you for your time, and sorry again for any inconvenience.
l
Is it legal to use Is my problem new? during a contest?
Im asking cause it uses RAG(Retrieval-Augmented Generation), which is an AI framework
No.
Could sb favor me about this as i have said below:
this is the issue:
while in the contest, i see and read problem carefully, however in many cases, when i finished to read problem statement, i do not know how to begin to solve problem.
what should i do firstly, i see in youtube, that people using notepad for solve problem, can sb say me who has a lot of experience in CP and totaly CF, ..etc. CP platforms how to use notepad what shoild write after finsihing problem statement.
And furthermore many times i got some ideas, but i do ni thow to implement it when it is time to implement, i become crushed.
And also, in some problems as Div2, 3(c, d)(i am beginner) i even do nit understand problem, exactly in some cases, i read statement, but still i do not understand because i feel like problem gives this stroy, and ...this input, ...this putput what shoul do
her is everything
please help me about this topic
Bro First watch some beginner friendly youtube tutorials on youtube after that slowly you will start grasping things on your own. Everyone faces this when they start. I would recommend watching TLE eliminators problem solution rating wise, those are beginner friendly tutorials. Once you get all these things you will start solving things on your own.
thanks much
How would we even know if someone cheated or not? I'm just new
people who dont do codeforces think they can get away with cheating but its really obvious when they do it
people who do codeforces dont bother cheating bc they want to get rating fairly
the issue with cheaters is theres too many of them at the current moment to take them all down. but its hard to get away with cheating if people are actually looking at your account or problemsetters actually care.
Well I mean at the end of the day it's you vs. you, no use bothering with cheating if a rating is all you get instead of actual improvement. I'll just do me. Thanks for the reply :)
yes
can you stop cheating
bro I already stop
YES, is good
I am a Chinese.I can't read it.
I want to clarify something about the AI rules — as I understand them, using AI to generate algorithmic logic is prohibited, but I’m unsure how that applies to standard algorithms like Dijkstra: would it still be considered a violation to ask an AI to generate Dijkstra’s algorithm during a contest, even if no part of the problem statement or its details are provided, or is the restriction mainly about using AI in connection with the specific problem?
i have a suggestion of people writing the code in codeforces, not being able to copy-paste their code.while that makes cheating almost impossible it may change the peoples habits to code