Valeria de PaivaView profile
Researcher
Valeria de Paiva is a mathematician and AI research scientist, currently serving as Founder of the Topos Institute in Berkeley where she explores the deep connections between mathematics, logic, and computation. She earned her PhD under the supervision of Martin Hyland, working on Dialectica categories, which established her foundational work connecting linear logic with Gödel's Dialectica interpretation. Dr. de Paiva's research spans category theory, programming languages, type theories, and logic in computer science, with special emphasis on the semantics of natural language and lexical semantics. She has pioneered work in linear and modal logics and their applications to mathematics, particularly in building tools to extract, structure, and reason about mathematical knowledge. Her research bridges symbolic/structural and distributional meaning representations through knowledge graphs, ontologies, and computational frameworks. Her recent publications reveal a strong trend toward mathematical concept extraction and natural language processing for mathematical texts. She has developed innovative approaches like MathGloss for building mathematical glossaries and Parmesan for educational concept extraction, demonstrating how theoretical foundations in category theory can solve practical problems in knowledge representation and education. Among her notable recognitions is the unofficial title of 'Ambassador of Logic,' awarded after she was invited by the Division of Logic, Methodology, and Philosophy of Science and Technology to record a video on logic. She has served as council member of this division from 2020-2023. Dr. de Paiva is deeply committed to mentoring and supporting women in logic and computer science. She has mentored 12 PhD students and postdocs at the Applied Category Theory MRC 2022. She co-founded and maintains the Women in Logic website, blog, and Facebook group, serves on the steering committee for Women in Logic, and helps organize the Workshop on Women in Logic, which has held nine editions as of the latest information. She also contributes to the ACM-W Scholarship Program supporting women students in computing worldwide. She is actively involved in numerous academic initiatives including serving as co-chair for CICM 2025 and MFPS 2024, and as scientific committee member for CT2025. She co-founded groups including Women in Logic, Lógicas Brasileiras, and the Women in Logic Workshop, and has organized numerous international conferences and workshops focused on logic, category theory, and computational semantics.




