This viral math puzzle has multiple possible answers because the pattern is never clearly defined.
The two most common solutions are:
- 40 → each line adds the previous result:
1+4=5
5+(2+5)=12
12+(3+6)=21
21+(8+11)=40 - 96 → multiply the numbers, then add the first number:
1×4+1=5
2×5+2=12
3×6+3=21
8×11+8=96
That’s why people argue over it online: the puzzle is ambiguous, so different logical patterns can fit the same equations.