Home / Jobs / Researcher - Lean 4 & Formal Proof Systems
Researcher - Lean 4 & Formal Proof Systems
OxfordSource: WhatJobs
£83,000–£124,000
Researcher – Lean 4 & Formal Proof Systems (AI Training)
About The Role
What if your deep mathematical training could directly shape how AI understands and constructs formal proofs? We're looking for mathematicians and formal verification experts to translate sophisticated mathematical arguments into machine-verifiable Lean 4 proofs — working at the true frontier of what proof assistants can express and automate.
This is a fully remote, flexible contract role for researchers who love rigor, structure, and pushing the boundaries of mechanized mathematics.
Organization: Alignerr
Type: Hourly Contract
Location: Remote
Commitment: 10–40 hours/week
What You'll Do
Translate informal mathematical proofs into precise, machine-verifiable formalizations in Lean 4
Analyze both generic and domain-specific proofs — identifying gaps, hidden assumptions, and formalizable substructures
Construct formalizations that test the limits of existing proof assistants, especially where automation struggles or fails
Investigate and articulate why automated provers break down — whether due to complexity, missing lemmas, or insufficient libraries
Develop highly readable, reproducible proof scripts aligned with mathematical best practices and Lean idioms
Provide expert guidance on proof decomposition, lemma selection, and structuring strategies for formal models
Collaborate with AI researchers to design, refine, and evaluate formal verification pipelines
Create Lean proofs that reveal deeper patterns or generalizations implicit in the original mathematics
Who You Are
Hold a Master's degree or higher in Mathematics, Logic, Theoretical Computer Science, or a closely related field
Possess a strong foundation in rigorous proof writing across areas such as algebra, analysis, topology, logic, or discrete mathematics
Have hands‑on experience with Lean (Lean 3 or Lean 4), with Lean 4 strongly preferred — experience with Coq, Isabelle/HOL, or Agda also valued
Deeply enthusiastic about formal verification, proof assistants, and the future of mechanized mathematics
Able to translate dense, informal mathematical arguments into clean, structured, machine-checkable proofs
Intellectually curious and motivated by working where automated tools reach their limits
Nice to Have
Familiarity with type theory, the Curry-Howard correspondence, and proof automation tools
Experience contributing to large-scale formalization projects such as Mathlib
Prior exposure to theorem provers in contexts where manual scaffolding is frequently required
Background in data annotation, evaluation systems, or AI training workflows
Strong communication skills for explaining formalization decisions, edge cases, and reasoning strategies
Why Join Us
Work directly on cutting‑edge AI research projects alongside leading AI labs
Fully remote and flexible — work when and where it suits you
Freelance autonomy with the structure of meaningful, high-impact research tasks
Gain exposure to how advanced LLMs are trained and evaluated on formal reasoning
Contribute to mapping the frontier of what formal verification can express and automate
Potential for ongoing work and contract extension as new projects launch
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