SDU is part of global initiative to bring mathematical certainty to modern computing and artificial intelligence
The University of Southern Denmark and Professor Fabrizio Montesi from the Centre for Formal Methods and Future Computing have a leading role in a new international initiative. CSLib is building a reusable formal infrastructure for developing software with mathematical guarantees. The initiative will be placing SDU at the centre of the development of the future foundation for software and artificial intelligence.
Modern societies depend on software operating across critical domains such as energy, finance, healthcare, scientific research, and communication. As AI tools increasingly generate and refine code, expectations for reliability, security, and transparency continue to grow.
Although computer science has long produced rigorous mathematical frameworks for specifying and verifying software called formal methods, this knowledge remains scattered across research literature and specialized tools, making it difficult to use in mainstream development.
Uniting global expertise
CSLib aims to change this by transitioning formal methods from specialized practice to shared, large-scale infrastructure. The initiative is guided by researchers from the University of Southern Denmark, Stanford University, the University of Texas at Austin, Amazon, Google DeepMind, and the Lean FRO, uniting expertise across formal methods, software systems, and artificial intelligence.
The initiative will be placing SDU at the centre of the development of the future foundation for software and artificial intelligence.
- With CSLib, SDU demonstrates how our strong research environments can create global impact through cutting-edge research, innovation and international collaboration. Our engagement in the project shows that groundbreaking research within Formal Methods and software development can push the boundaries for how the digital society of tomorrow will be built. I am proud that SDU is playing a central role in such an ambitious global initiative, says SDU’s Rector, Jens Ringsmose.
Help to strengthen trust in digital systems
The CSLib initiative builds on research in Formal Methods, distributed systems and secure software already taking place at SDU and gives researchers and students the opportunity to collaborate closely with some of the world's leading environments in the field.
The project is thus also in line with the University of Southern Denmark's strategy to strengthen international research collaboration and develop strong research and innovation environments.
Professor Fabrizio Montesi, Director of the Centre for Formal Methods and Future Computing and Chair at the Danish Institute for Advanced Study at the University of Southern Denmark serves as Lead Maintainer and Steering Group member. He says:
- Software now operates on a planetary scale. To achieve trustworthy digital systems – including those shaped by AI – we need mathematical clarity that is equally far-reaching, Montesi says and elaborates:
- CSLib is long-term architectural work: building the shared intellectual infrastructure on which future computing will stand.
The ambition is that CSLib can create a common infrastructure that researchers and developers around the world can build on - and can help to strengthen trust in digital systems in the coming decades.
SDU is - through the participation of the Centre for Formal Methods and Future Computing (FORM) - the first European institution with a leading role in both the management and technical development of the project.
SDU and CSLIB in brief
Professor Fabrizio Montesi serves as Lead Maintainer of CSLib and is a founding member of the project’s Steering Group. As Lead Maintainer, he oversees the project’s development and coordinates the teams of maintainers and the core technical group.
The University of Southern Denmark plays a central role in the CSLib project through the Centre for Formal Methods and Future Computing (FORM), based at the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science and the Danish Institute for Advanced Study (DIAS). FORM is a strategic investment by SDU to advance formal methods and their application to modern software and artificial intelligence (AI) systems through the development of comprehensive, large-scale formal infrastructures for computer science and software development.