Shahar Maoz

Shahar Maoz is a Professor at the School of Computer Science and AI in Tel Aviv University, Israel. He received his PhD from the Weizmann Institute of Science in 2009 and has been at Tel Aviv University since 2012. His research focuses on software engineering with emphasis on formal methods and reactive systems specification and synthesis.

His research interests center around software and systems modeling, testing, formal specification languages, and synthesis. He has developed frameworks like Spectra for reactive systems specifications and has made significant contributions to understanding GR(1) specifications, realizability analysis, and controller synthesis. His work bridges theoretical foundations with practical applications in automated software engineering.

His recent publications demonstrate a consistent focus on reactive synthesis, particularly addressing challenges in GR(1) specifications, specification quality, and practical implementation. The research shows evolution from foundational work on specification languages to practical tools and heuristics that improve the usability and performance of reactive synthesis techniques.

• ERC Starting Grant (2015)
• ERC Proof of Concept Grant (2022)
• ISF Grant (2023)
• BSF Grant (2025)
• DFG-ISF grant (2025)
• ACM SIGSOFT OUTSTANDING DISSERTATION AWARD (awarded to Rachel Tzoref-Brill)

Professor Maoz actively mentors graduate students and postdocs, with numerous PhD and MSc students having completed their degrees under his supervision. His research is supported by significant grants including ERC, ISF, BSF, and DFG-ISF funding. He leads the SYNTECH and SYNTACT research projects focused on synthesis technologies for reactive systems software engineers.

He directs a research lab with multiple current members including Shachaf Cohen, Shmulik Cohen, Dor Ma'ayan, and others working on projects related to reactive synthesis, formal specifications, and software engineering. He co-organized the International SPECS summer school series and a Dagstuhl Seminar on Specification Engineering.