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Main Author: Paul, Abhijit
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2508.12475
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author Paul, Abhijit
author_facet Paul, Abhijit
contents Prompt programming treats large language model prompts as software components with typed interfaces. Based on a literature survey of 15 recent works from 2023 to 2025, we observe a consistent trend: type systems are central to emerging prompt programming frameworks. However, there are gaps in constraint expressiveness and in supporting algorithms. To address these issues, we introduce the notion of Lambda Prompt, a dependently typed calculus with probabilistic refinements for syntactic and semantic constraints. While this is not yet a full calculus, the formulation motivates a type-theoretic foundation for prompt programming. Our catalog of 13 constraints highlights underexplored areas in constraint expressiveness (constraints 9 through 13). To address the algorithmic gap, we propose a constraint-preserving optimization rule. Finally, we outline research directions on developing a compiler for prompt programs.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2508_12475
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Type-Driven Prompt Programming: From Typed Interfaces to a Calculus of Constraints
Paul, Abhijit
Programming Languages
Formal Languages and Automata Theory
Prompt programming treats large language model prompts as software components with typed interfaces. Based on a literature survey of 15 recent works from 2023 to 2025, we observe a consistent trend: type systems are central to emerging prompt programming frameworks. However, there are gaps in constraint expressiveness and in supporting algorithms. To address these issues, we introduce the notion of Lambda Prompt, a dependently typed calculus with probabilistic refinements for syntactic and semantic constraints. While this is not yet a full calculus, the formulation motivates a type-theoretic foundation for prompt programming. Our catalog of 13 constraints highlights underexplored areas in constraint expressiveness (constraints 9 through 13). To address the algorithmic gap, we propose a constraint-preserving optimization rule. Finally, we outline research directions on developing a compiler for prompt programs.
title Type-Driven Prompt Programming: From Typed Interfaces to a Calculus of Constraints
topic Programming Languages
Formal Languages and Automata Theory
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2508.12475