Courtade–Kumar Conjecture on most informative Boolean functions

Prove that for every Boolean function b:{0,1}^n→{0,1} and every binary symmetric channel with crossover probability α∈(0,1/2), the mutual information between b(X^n) and the channel output Y^n satisfies I(b(X^n);Y^n) ≤ 1−H(α), where H(α) is the binary entropy function.

Background

The conjecture asserts that dictatorship functions maximize mutual information through a binary symmetric channel. While special cases and high-noise regimes have been resolved, the general conjecture remains open.

The authors summarize prior progress and present partial advances (e.g., improved bounds in the high-noise regime) but explicitly note that the full conjecture is still unresolved.

References

While these results represent significant milestones, the main conjecture remains open in its full generality.

Accelerating Scientific Research with Gemini: Case Studies and Common Techniques  (2602.03837 - Woodruff et al., 3 Feb 2026) in Information Theory: The Courtade–Kumar Conjecture, Section 8.1 (Recent Progress and Partial Results)