Eric Walkingshaw
Compiler engineer + PL researcher
About me
Hello! I’m a compiler engineer and programming languages researcher based in Corvallis, Oregon, USA.
My expertise spans all phases of programming language design, specification, and implementation, including domain-specific languages, type systems, compilers, functional programming, software variation, modularity, and human factors.
I’m part of the founding team of Formal, where we’re building a serverless computing stack from scratch to be safer and more performant than anything else out there. My work at Formal involves a mix of programming languages research, formal verification, and compiler engineering.
These days, I mainly hack in Rust, Haskell, and Rocq. However, I enjoy learning new languages and so tend to dabble in lots of them. I especially like playing with esoteric languages, which (along with functional programming) are what got me interested in programming languages in the first place.
Besides programming languages, I’m into other nerdy things like game theory, linguistics, board games, and sci-fi/fantasy books. I’m also into (arguably) less nerdy things like playing tennis, gardening, traveling, following my hometown sportsball teams, and most of all, spending time with family and friends.
I live with my wife Allison, a graphic designer and animal whisperer, and our wonderful daughter Eleanor.
Check out my Research page for more on my research interests and expertise, or my Software page for links and brief descriptions of some open source projects I’ve worked on.
I’m not looking for work, but if you’re interested in my background, you can also take a peek at my engineering-oriented resume or my research-oriented CV.