Formal Methods and the Future of Programming
a day ago
- #formal-methods
- #software-verification
- #agentic-coding
- Jane Street previously viewed formal methods as too costly for most software, despite valuing type systems as lightweight formal methods.
- The emergence of agentic coding has shifted their perspective, reducing costs and increasing benefits, prompting them to build a formal methods team.
- Formal methods can help verify agent-generated code more efficiently and provide feedback to improve agent problem-solving.
- Jane Street's deep control over their language and a community of programmers ready for advanced techniques positions them well for this work.
- They aim to integrate formal methods into OxCaml, leveraging both internal innovations and external tools, and are hiring for roles in London and New York.