Yao Li

Yao Li is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Portland State University, specializing in Programming Languages, Formal Verification, and Dependent Types. They earned a Ph.D. in Computer and Information Science from the University of Pennsylvania (2022), supervised by Stephanie Weirich, and hold a Master’s and Bachelor’s in Software Engineering from Shanghai Jiao Tong University (2016, 2013) under Zhengwei Qi.

• Ph.D., Computer and Information Science, University of Pennsylvania (2022)
• M.S., Software Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University (2016)
• B.S., Software Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University (2013)

Their research focuses on formal verification of functional programming languages, particularly Haskell, and mechanized proofs using tools like Coq. They work on specifying and verifying networked servers, lazy program cost analysis, and embedded systems through program adverbs and Tlön embeddings.

Recent publications (2018-2025) demonstrate expertise in Haskell verification, formal methods, and interaction trees. Key trends include bridging the gap between mechanized formalization and real-world code, advancing lazy evaluation semantics, and enhancing software verification through dependent types.

Yao Li actively participates in academic service as a committee member and session chair in conferences like POPL, ICFP, and PLDI, contributing to artifact evaluation, program organization, and student research competitions.