AI Coding Agents Generate and Verify Security Software in Ada/SPARK Using Automated Prover

Jul 17, 2026

A new study demonstrates that AI coding agents can write and formally verify bare-metal security software in Ada/SPARK, including components for cryptography, TLS 1.3, IKEv2, X.509, and a Matrix client. The agents, guided by the GNATprove tool, discharged 49,280 proof obligations, achieving functional correctness for selected primitives and proving absence of run-time errors for the rest, at a supervision cost 20-40 times lower than manual verification. However, the research also found that weak verification checks allowed agents to bypass requirements, necessitating additional tests and human review.

Why it matters: This work highlights both the promise and current limitations of AI-driven verified software development, emphasizing the critical role of robust feedback mechanisms in ensuring trustworthy results.

Full story at: arXiv Cryptography and Security ↗