PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Adam Topaz

Adam Topaz is a mathematician and Mathlib maintainer whose work helps grow formalized mathematics as AI accelerates discovery. He earned a Ph.D. in mathematics at the University of Pennsylvania in 2013 and held a UC Berkeley postdoc from 2013 to 2016. In 2014, he submitted an arXiv paper on reconstructing function fields from Galois groups; his career also includes a postdoctoral position at Oxford. Since 2020, much of his research has focused on formalization with Lean; he contributed homological algebra and condensed mathematics to the Liquid Tensor Experiment, completed in 2022. He taught a PIMS graduate course on formalization in 2023, and as of October 2026 he is an associate professor at the University of Alberta and a senior manager at the Mathlib Initiative.

Now at
University of Alberta and Mathlib Initiative
Works
26
Citations
43
h-index
3

Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 18 October 2026.

Timeline

  1. 2013

    A doctorate in mathematics

    In 2013, he completes a Ph.D. in mathematics at the University of Pennsylvania.

  2. 2013–2016

    Berkeley postdoc and a Galois paper

    From 2013 to 2016, he works as a postdoc in UC Berkeley's Department of Mathematics. In 2014, he submits an arXiv paper on reconstructing function fields from rational quotients of mod-ℓ Galois groups.

  3. Since 2020

    Formalizing mathematics with Lean

    Since 2020, he focuses much of his research on formalized mathematics with Lean and serves as a Mathlib maintainer.

  4. July 2022

    Completing the Liquid Tensor Experiment

    In July 2022, the Lean community completes the Liquid Tensor Experiment, formally verifying the main theorem of liquid vector spaces; Topaz contributes homological algebra and condensed mathematics.

  5. September 2023–December 2023

    Teaching formalization at PIMS

    From September to December 2023, he teaches the PIMS graduate course Formalization of Mathematics using Lean 4 and Mathlib4.

  6. As of October 2026

    Senior Manager at Mathlib Initiative

    As of October 2026, he is an associate professor at the University of Alberta and a senior manager at the Mathlib Initiative. His earlier postdoctoral career includes Oxford. The initiative scales Mathlib, a library of computer-verified mathematics, as AI accelerates discovery.

A language model matched the links in this timeline to people, organizations and papers (provisional, model-judged).

Career

  1. Since 2020University of AlbertaAssociate Professor
  2. NowMathlib InitiativeSenior Manager
  3. 2023Pacific Institute for the Mathematical SciencesInstructor
  4. 2015–2018University of OxfordPostdoctoral Researcher
  5. 2013–2016University of California, BerkeleyPostdoc

Education

  1. 2013University of PennsylvaniaPhD

From the biography and OpenAlex affiliations (the years of papers that list the organization), so some years are approximate.

Most-cited works

  1. Commuting-liftable subgroups of Galois groups II2015 · Journal für die reine und angewandte Mathematik (Crelles Journal) · 15 citations
  2. Almost-Commuting-Liftable Subgroups of Galois Groups2012 · 4 citations
  3. Abelian-by-central Galois groups of fields I: A formal description2015 · Transactions of the American Mathematical Society · 3 citations
  4. INVARIANT HYPERSURFACES2020 · Journal of the Institute of Mathematics of Jussieu · 3 citations
  5. A Torelli Theorem for Higher-Dimensional Function Fields2017 · 2 citations

From OpenAlex, as of 18 October 2026.

  1. Stanford University trained or employed 27 of the 113 AI major-prize winners, more than any other universityIncludes University of Alberta. Stanford University trained or employed 27 of the 113 AI major-prize winners, more than any other university. We compare doctorate and employment links for major-prize and best-paper winners.
  2. More people shaping AI studied at Massachusetts Institute of Technology than at any other institutionIncludes University of Alberta. Our estimates of where the people shaping AI studied and where their careers led, from education records in cited biographies.
  3. The company share of AI researchers’ top papers rose from 2% to 33%Includes University of Alberta. We estimate where leading AI researchers worked when their most-cited papers appeared. The company share rose from 2% in 1975–1979 to 33% in 2020–2024.
  4. Google has the highest combined h-index among AI organizationsIncludes University of Alberta. Our estimates of combined and median h-index at AI organizations, using current affiliations and OpenAlex records.

Colleagues

People with dated positions at the same organization in the same years.

Sources and credits

Photo: We have no published photo of Adam Topaz yet. Send us a free-licensed photo.

  1. Adam Topaz adamtopaz.com. Checked 18 October 2026.
  2. Adam Topaz | Department of Mathematics math.berkeley.edu. Checked 18 October 2026.
  3. Reconstructing function fields from rational quotients of mod-$\ell$ Galois groups arxiv.org. Checked 18 October 2026.
  4. Mathlib maintainers leanprover-community.github.io. Checked 18 October 2026.
  5. Completion of the Liquid Tensor Experiment leanprover-community.github.io. Checked 18 October 2026.
  6. Formalization of Mathematics courses.pims.math.ca. Checked 18 October 2026.
  7. Team — Mathlib Initiative mathlib-initiative.org. Checked 18 October 2026.
  8. Academic Staff | Mathematical and Statistical Sciences ualberta.ca. Checked 18 October 2026.
  9. Kevin Buzzard and Alex Kontorovich on the Future of Formal Mathematics: A Mathlib Initiative Interview renaissancephilanthropy.org. Checked 18 October 2026.