Progress in Computer-Assisted Inductive Theorem Proving by Human-Orientedness and Descente Infinie?

In this short position paper we briefly review the development history of automated inductive theorem proving and computer-assisted mathematical induction. We think that the current low expectations on progress in this field result from a faulty narrow-scope historical projection. Our main motivation is to explain–on an abstract but hopefully sufficiently descriptive level–why we believe that future progress in the field is to result from human-orientedness and descente infinie.