Categories with families (CwFs) have been used to define the semantics of type theory in type theory. In the setting of Homotopy Type Theory (HoTT), one of the limitations of the traditional notion of CwFs is the requirement to set-truncate types, which excludes models based on univalent categories, such as the standard set model. To address this limitation, we introduce the concept of a Groupoid Category with Families (GCwF). This framework truncates types at the groupoid level and incorporates coherence equations, providing a natural extension of the CwF framework when starting from a 1-category. We demonstrate that the initial GCwF for a type theory with a base family of sets and Pi-types (groupoid-syntax) is set-truncated. Consequently, this allows us to utilize the conventional intrinsic syntax of type theory while enabling interpretations in semantically richer and more natural models. All constructions in this paper were formalised in Cubical Agda.

The metatheory of dependent types has seen a lot of progress in recent years. In particular, the development of categorical gluing finally lets us work with semantic presentations of type theory (such as categories with families) to establish fundamental properties of type theory such as canonicity and normalisation. However, proofs by gluing have yet to reach the stage of computer formalisation: formal proofs for the metatheory of dependent types are still stuck in the age of tedious syntactic proofs. The main reason for this is that semantic presentations of type theory are defined using sophisticated indexed inductive types, which are prone to “transport hell”. In this paper, we introduce a new technique to work with CwFs in intensional type theory without getting stuck in transport hell. More specifically, we construct an alternative presentation of the initial CwF which encodes the substitutions as metatheoretical functions. This has the effect of strictifying all the equations that are involved in the substitution calculus, which greatly reduces the need for transports. As an application, we use our strictified initial CwF to give a short and elegant proof of canonicity for a type theory with dependent products and booleans with large elimination. The resulting proof is fully formalised in Agda.

Programming languages can be defined from the concrete to the abstract by abstract syntax trees, well-scoped syntax, well-typed (intrinsic) syntax, algebraic syntax (well-typed syntax quotiented by conversion). Another aspect is the representation of binding structure for which nominal approaches, De Bruijn indices/levels and higher order abstract syntax (HOAS) are available. In HOAS, binders are given by the function space of an internal language of presheaves. In this paper, we show how to combine the algebraic approach with the HOAS approach: following Uemura, we define languages as second-order generalised algebraic theories (SOGATs). Through a series of examples we show that non-substructural languages can be naturally defined as SOGATs. We give a formal definition of SOGAT signatures (using the syntax of a particular SOGAT) and define two translations from SOGAT signatures to GAT signatures (signatures for quotient inductive-inductive types), based on parallel and single substitutions, respectively.

Parametricity is a property of the syntax of type theory implying, e.g., that there is only one function having the type of the polymorphic identity function. Parametricity is usually proven externally, and does not hold internally. Internalising it is difficult because once there is a term witnessing parametricity, it also has to be parametric itself and this results in the appearance of higher dimensional cubes. In previous theories with internal parametricity, either an explicit syntax for higher cubes is present or the theory is extended with a new sort for the interval. In this paper we present a type theory with internal parametricity which is a simple extension of Martin-Löf type theory: there are a few new type formers, term formers and equations. Geometry is not explicit in this syntax, but emergent: the new operations and equations only refer to objects up to dimension 3. We show that this theory is modelled by presheaves over the BCH cube category. Fibrancy conditions are not needed because we use span-based rather than relational parametricity. We define a gluing model for this theory implying that external parametricity and canonicity hold. The theory can be seen as a special case of a new kind of modal type theory, and it is the simplest setting in which the computational properties of higher observational type theory can be demonstrated.

Erasure enriches type theory with a distinction between runtime relevant and irrelevant data, allowing the compilation step to safely erase the latter. Versions of this feature are implemented by many systems, including Agda, Idris, and Rocq. We present a structural version of type theory with erasure, formulated as a second-order generalised algebraic theory (SOGAT). Erasure is encoded as a phase distinction between runtime and erased terms, in the form of a proposition that can appear in a context. This formulation has several advantages: it has models based on categories with families, is compatible with other structural features such as staging, and provides a better guideline for implementation. Through the model theory of SOGATs, we study the semantics of type theory with erasure in families of sets, which generalises to any Grothendieck topos equipped with a tiny proposition. We establish conservativity over Martin-Löf type theory (MLTT) in both phases. For code extraction, we construct a presheaf model that produces untyped lambda calculus programs and prove its correctness through gluing. Our results are formalised in Agda and we provide a toy elaborator implementation.

Metatheorems about type theories are often proven by interpreting the syntax into models constructed using categorical gluing. We propose to use only sconing (gluing along a global section functor) instead of general gluing. The sconing is performed internally to a presheaf category, and we recover the original glued model by externalization. Our method relies on constructions involving two notions of models: first-order models (with explicit contexts) and higher-order models (without explicit contexts). Sconing turns a displayed higher-order model into a displayed first-order model. Using these, we derive specialized induction principles for the syntax of type theory. The input of such an induction principle is a boilerplate-free description of its motives and methods, not mentioning contexts. The output is a section with computation rules specified in the same internal language. We illustrate our framework by proofs of canonicity and normalization for type theory.

Abstract The setoid model is a model of intensional type theory that validates certain extensionality principles, like function extensionality and propositional extensionality, the latter being a limited form of univalence that equates logically equivalent propositions. The appeal of this model construction is that it can be constructed in a small, intensional, type theoretic metatheory, therefore giving a method to boostrap extensionality. The setoid model has been recently adapted into a formal system, namely Setoid Type Theory (SeTT). SeTT is an extension of intensional Martin-Löf type theory with constructs that give full access to the extensionality principles that hold in the setoid model. Although already a rich theory as currently defined, SeTT currently lacks a way to internalize the notion of type beyond propositions, hence we want to extend SeTT with a universe of setoids. To this aim, we present the construction of a (non-univalent) universe of setoids within the setoid model, first as an inductive-recursive definition, which is then translated to an inductive-inductive definition and finally to an inductive family. These translations from more powerful definition schemas to simpler ones ensure that our construction can still be defined in a relatively small metatheory which includes a proof-irrelevant identity type with a strong transport rule.

Quotient inductive-inductive types (QIITs) are generalized inductive types which allow sorts to be indexed over previously declared sorts, and allow usage of equality constructors. QIITs are especially useful for algebraic descriptions of type theories and constructive definitions of real, ordinal and surreal numbers. We develop new metatheory for large QIITs, large elimination, recursive equations and infinitary constructors. As in prior work, we describe QIITs using a type theory where each context represents a QIIT signature. However, in our case the theory of signatures can also describe its own signature, modulo universe sizes. We bootstrap the model theory of signatures using self-description and a Church-coded notion of signature, without using complicated raw syntax or assuming an existing internal QIIT of signatures. We give semantics to described QIITs by modeling each signature as a finitely complete CwF (category with families) of algebras. Compared to the case of finitary QIITs, we additionally need to show invariance under algebra isomorphisms in the semantics. We do this by modeling signature types as isofibrations. Finally, we show by a term model construction that every QIIT is constructible from the syntax of the theory of signatures.

Higher inductive-inductive types (HIITs) generalize inductive types of dependent type theories in two ways. On the one hand they allow the simultaneous definition of multiple sorts that can be indexed over each other. On the other hand they support equality constructors, thus generalizing higher inductive types of homotopy type theory. Examples that make use of both features are the Cauchy real numbers and the well-typed syntax of type theory where conversion rules are given as equality constructors. In this paper we propose a general definition of HIITs using a small type theory, named the theory of signatures. A context in this theory encodes a HIIT by listing the constructors. We also compute notions of induction and recursion for HIITs, by using variants of syntactic logical relation translations. Building full categorical semantics and constructing initial algebras is left for future work. The theory of HIIT signatures was formalised in Agda together with the syntactic translations. We also provide a Haskell implementation, which takes signatures as input and outputs translation results as valid Agda code.

Quotient inductive-inductive types (QIITs) generalise inductive types in two ways: a QIIT can have more than one sort and the later sorts can be indexed over the previous ones. In addition, equality constructors are also allowed. We work in a setting with uniqueness of identity proofs, hence we use the term QIIT instead of higher inductive-inductive type. An example of a QIIT is the well-typed (intrinsic) syntax of type theory quotiented by conversion. In this paper first we specify finitary QIITs using a domain-specific type theory which we call the theory of signatures. The syntax of the theory of signatures is given by a QIIT as well. Then, using this syntax we show that all specified QIITs exist and they have a dependent elimination principle. We also show that algebras of a signature form a category with families (CwF) and use the internal language of this CwF to show that dependent elimination is equivalent to initiality.

We develop normalisation by evaluation (NBE) for dependent types based on presheaf categories. Our construction is formulated in the metalanguage of type theory using quotient inductive types. We use a typed presentation hence there are no preterms or realizers in our construction, and every construction respects the conversion relation. NBE for simple types uses a logical relation between the syntax and the presheaf interpretation. In our construction, we merge the presheaf interpretation and the logical relation into a proof-relevant logical predicate. We prove normalisation, completeness, stability and decidability of definitional equality. Most of the constructions were formalized in Agda.

We present an internal formalisation of a type heory with dependent types in Type Theory using a special case of higher inductive types from Homotopy Type Theory which we call quotient inductive types (QITs). Our formalisation of type theory avoids referring to preterms or a typability relation but defines directly well typed objects by an inductive definition. We use the elimination principle to define the set-theoretic and logical predicate interpretation. The work has been formalized using the Agda system extended with QITs using postulates.