More automated formal methods?! : If so, why, where & how?

Formal Methods (FM) have been around for decades and many have been improving all the time. Automated formal methods techniques and tools have been making a mark in real world applications across industry domains. So, why and where do we need more automation? How much automation is required? This paper attempts to cover an assessment on where I believe we are, based on my own not-so-limited but diverse enough experience in automated industry-strength formal methods and model based systems engineering area, where we might need to get to and possibly how. Key characteristics of future automation needed for success are outlined. No attempt is made to be exhaustive as the world of FMs is vast and the collective work of FM expert researchers, developers and users is needed for exploration – “to boldly meet future challenges which no FM has ever met before”