معرفی
Xavier Rival serves as Research Director at INRIA Paris and Director of the Computer Science Department at École Normale Supérieure (ENS) in Paris, which is part of PSL University. He also holds the position of Adjunct Professor at ENS/PSL. Previously from 2012 to 2024, he led the ANTIQUE (ANalyse staTIQUE) research group at INRIA Paris located at ENS Paris.
His research focuses on abstract interpretation and software verification through static analysis, with particular emphasis on symbolic abstractions including trace partitioning abstraction, shape analysis, separation logic, and memory abstract domains. He has been instrumental in the design, implementation, and industrial transfer of the Astrée analyzer, a static analysis tool capable of verifying safety properties for industrial-scale safety-critical software. Currently, he leads the MemCAD ERC project aimed at developing a library of abstract domains for describing complex memory states.
Rival's publication record demonstrates consistent contributions to the field of programming languages and static analysis, with his most recent work exploring probabilistic program verification, shape analysis for complex data structures, and applications to embedded systems. His research bridges theoretical foundations with practical applications, particularly in safety-critical domains.
- ERC Starting Grant recipient (MemCAD project)
- Author of foundational work on Astrée static analyzer
- Co-author of textbook on Introduction to Static Analysis published by MIT Press
- Active program committee member for major conferences including POPL, PLDI, and SAS
Rival has supervised numerous PhD students throughout his career, including Tie Cheng (now CEO of MatrixLead), Arlen Cox, Huisong Li, and Jiangchao Liu. His laboratory has received research funding from multiple sources including ANR projects (VeriAMOS, VerAsCo, AnaStaSec) and the ERC Starting Grant for MemCAD. The MemCAD project has led to the development of analysis tools applicable to spreadsheet applications through the startup MatrixLead, where Rival serves as Scientific Adviser.
