My assumption is always, a bright high school student has an impressive science fair project, but science reporting is terrible and misinterprets it as something more than it is.

(Also: "Kid outsmarts stuffy professionals" is an evergreen journalistic subject, and don't dismiss the political angle of sowing distrust in "establishment" scientists in favor of a younger person using AI)

Not that young people can't do big things but it's probably got less rigor than a graduate-level project.

Don't get me wrong, this is a really cool idea and it sounds like he did a great job. I don't want to be unjustly dismissive. These stories come up all the time and they usually don't amount to a whole lot- like most research.