Proving at Scale for Universal Algebra
João Araújo, Jan Hůla, Mikoláš Janota, Edmond W. H. Lee, Bartosz Naskręcki
cs.LO
Oct 1, 2026 · v1
math.GR
TL;DR
Lean 4 kernel-checks finite identity bases, or proofs of non-finite-basability, for all semigroups of order at most 6, produced by LLM agents.
Abstract
We introduce SemiBase, a project that computes and formally certifies finite identity bases for small semigroups. Deciding finite basability is undecidable for finite algebras and remains open for finite semigroups. The task requires a proof that a candidate basis is complete, or a proof that none exists, rather than a single first-order validity query. LLM-guided agents search for these proofs; a referee agent rebuilds them from source, and the Lean kernel checks the resulting corpus in a final audit. Humans choose targets and approve final outcomes. We certify every semigroup of order at most 6: all 1309 semigroups of order at most 5 and all 15973 of order 6, including proofs that the four known nonfinitely based semigroups have no finite basis. The bases for order 6 define 505 distinct varieties, whose inclusion order Vampire determines except for four pairs. The resulting catalogue is a machine-checked account of results scattered across the literature and a tested foundation for order 7.
Problem
Deciding whether a finite semigroup has a finite identity basis is an open problem; for finite algebras in general it is undecidable. No machine-checked catalogue settles finite basability for small semigroups.
Approach
SemiBase uses LLM agents to propose candidate bases, search for counter-models and write completeness proofs. Codex agents act as workers and coordinator, and a Claude agent acts as referee. A deterministic scripted pipeline, written by the agents, settled the bulk of the classes. Agents then handled the remaining hard cases individually, and a final Lean 4 kernel audit checks the whole corpus.
Results
All 1,309 semigroups of order at most 5 and all 15,973 of order 6 carry Lean certificates, including non-finite-basability proofs for the four known nonfinitely based semigroups of order 6. The order-6 bases define 505 varieties, and Vampire determines their inclusion order except for four pairs.
| Order | Semigroups | Nilpotent |
|---|
| 4 | 126 | 10 |
| 5 | 1,160 | 93 |
| 6 | 15,973 | 2,813 |
| 7 | 836,021 | 616,830 |
Number of distinct semigroups per order (selected rows)