Dr. Magnus Egerstedt is a robotics professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he serves as school chair for the top-ranked School of Electrical and Computer Engineering. His research focuses on swarm robotics and on how to make large teams of robots – may they be in the air, on the ground, or even under water – come together to solve complex tasks. He is a pioneer in the area of distributed decision making and machine learning, and his most recent research venture involves the use of robots to help combat climate change through the SlothBot, which is a slow, energy-efficient, environmental monitoring robot deployed in the tree canopies. Dr. Egerstedt has won a number of research and teaching awards, he has authored over 500 scholarly articles, and his research is frequently featured in the popular media, including the Wall Street Journal, CNN, BBC, and NPR.

The Robots Are Coming! (And We Are Unprepared)

High level talk about the the current robotic mega trends, including:

• How has AI and machine learning changed the robotics landscape?
• The future of work?
• How can we lessen the coming disruption?
• How should one design robots that can coexist productively with humans?
• How Can Environmental Monitoring Robots Help Combat Climate Change?

Recent work on the SLothBot, which is a slow and energy-efficient, solar powered robot that moves along cables suspended in tree canopies for the purpose of environmental monitoring. Cute robots, sloths, and climate change all rolled up in one talk.

Robots and Art

Robotics has the potential to make us healthier, richer, more productive. (Or not.) But it can also make us more creative. This talk will look at some of the work in my lab (and others) on robots and art, including dancing robots, painting robots, robots that play music, and swarms of robots that move in such a way as to evoke emotional responses.

Swarm Robotics

How can large teams of robots be constructed to mimic the mesmerizing patterns seen in nature, with schooling fish, flocking birds, and swarming insects? Additionally, what are the use cases? (Examples include precision agriculture, search and rescue robotics, space telescopes, warehousing robots, and self-driving cars)