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Join us each week as we explore the exciting world of robotics, artificial intelligence, and autonomous machines. Each episode, Dr Claire Asher — science communicator and robot enthusiast — chats with robotics scientists from across the UK to find out how their cutting-edge research is influencing the future of every aspect of science, technology, and engineering, from the mundane to the extraordinary.
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Claire chatted to Maria Elena Giannaccini from the University of Aberdeen about soft and bioinspired robotics for healthcare and beyond. Maria Elena Giannaccini has a degree in Biomedical Engineering from the Università di Pisa in Italy. She conducted her Master’s thesis at Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna as part of the EU-funded OCTOPUS project. In 201…
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Claire chatted to Jonathan Walker from Innovate UK about translating robotics research into the commercial sector. Jonathan Walker is the Innovation Lead for Robotics and Sensors at Innovate UK. He is working with government, universities, businesses and cross-sector teams to accelerate the development and uptake of robotics in the UK. Areas of par…
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Claire chatted to Esyin Chew from Cardiff Metropolitan University about service and social humanoid robots in healthcare and education. Esyin Chew is the Director of the EUREKA Robotics Centre, one of 11 specialist robotics centres in the UK, impacting underprivileged communities with over 120 humanoid robots. She has led million-pound government o…
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Claire chatted to Matt Beane from the University of California, Santa Barbara about how humans can learn to work with intelligent machines. Matt Beane conducts field research on robots and AI in the workplace, focusing on positive exceptions applicable to the broader world of work. He has published his award-winning research in top management journ…
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Claire chatted to Gisela Reyes-Cruz from the University of Nottingham about how humans interact with, trust and accept robots. Gisela Reyes-Cruz investigates human-computer and human-robot interaction to understand everyday life interactions with technologies, as well as trust in them and public acceptance. These technologies include autonomous and…
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Claire chatted to John Leonard from Massachusetts Institute of Technology about autonomous navigation for underwater vehicles and self-driving cars. John Leonard is a Professor of Mechanical and Ocean Engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and a member of the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL). H…
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Robot Talk will be back for a new season on the 27th September 2024 — make sure you're subscribed to be the first to hear the latest episodes!Di Claire Asher
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Robotics is helping to rehabilitate and increase human abilities in areas like mobility and stamina. Innovations in robotic devices, exoskeletons, and wearable tech aim to offer disabled people different perspectives and new experiences, as well as supporting humans more widely to access, inhabit and work safely in dangerous and extreme conditions.…
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Claire chatted to Simone Schuerle from ETH Zürich all about microrobots, medicine and science. Simone Schuerle is Assistant Professor at ETH Zurich in Switzerland, where she heads the Responsive Biomedical System Lab. With her team, she develops diagnostic and therapeutic systems at the nano- and microscale with the aim of tackling a range of chall…
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Claire chatted to Lord Ara Darzi from Imperial College London all about robotic surgery - past, present and future. Ara Darzi is Co-Director of the Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College London and holds the Paul Hamlyn Chair of Surgery. In 2002, he was knighted for his services to medicine and surgery and in 2007 was introduced …
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Claire chatted to Isabelle Ormerod from the University of Bristol all about human-centred design and women in robotics. Isabelle Ormerod is a PhD student at Bristol Robotics Lab in the Design and Manufacturing Futures Lab. Her professional path began in the medical product design industry, where she observed firsthand the application of human facto…
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Claire chatted to Mario Di Castro from CERN all about robotic inspection and maintenance in hazardous environments. Mario Di Castro has a Master’s degree in electronic engineering from the University of Naples Federico II in Italy and a PhD in robotics and industrial controls from the Polytechnic University of Madrid in Spain. Since 2011 he has led…
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Claire chatted to Margarita Chli from the University of Cyprus all about vision, navigation, and small aerial drones. Margarita Chli is a professor of Robotic Vision and the director of the Vision for Robotics Lab, at the University of Cyprus and ETH Zurich. Her work has contributed to the first vision-based autonomous flight of a small drone and t…
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Claire chatted to Steve Benford from the University of Nottingham all about art, dance, and cat sitting robots. Steve Benford is the Dunford Professor of Computer Science at the University of Nottingham where he co-founded the Mixed Reality Laboratory. His research explores artistic applications of digital technologies through performance-led metho…
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Claire chatted to Estelle Raffy from the University of Bristol all about animal behaviour, intelligence, and life-like artificial systems. Estelle Raffy is a PhD student at the University of Bristol. During her Bachelor's degree in neuroscience and cognitive science, the “brained body” of the octopus kept her wondering: how can nature start with si…
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Claire chatted to Chang Liu from Extend Robotics all about teleoperation, virtual reality, and software. Chang Liu is an entrepreneur from academia and high-tech start-ups. He is the founder, CEO and Chief Designer of Extend Robotics. He was previously a research associate in Imperial College London and University of Southampton on autonomous aeria…
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Claire chatted to Vassia Simaiaki from Wayve all about computer vision, artificial intelligence, and self-driving cars. Vassia Simaiaki is passionate about taking research into application and has spent the last decade of her career in computer vision. She leads AI research in vision and graphics at Wayve. Her focus is pushing the boundaries of nov…
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Claire chatted to Danesh Tarapore from the University of Southampton all about fault detection, division of labour, and robot swarms. Danesh Tarapore is an Associate Professor at the School of Electronics and Computer Science at the University of Southampton. Danesh has addressed a diverse range of challenges in fault detection and recovery in robo…
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Claire chatted to Ella Maule from the Bristol Robotics Laboratory all about community robotics and the social side of robot design. Ella Maule is a PhD Student in Ethical & Sustainable Futures at the Bristol Robotics Laboratory and a co-lead of Women in Robotics UK. Grounded in the principles of Responsible Innovation, her research explores the con…
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Claire chatted to Stephen Oram from Nudge the Future Fiction all about applied science fiction and the quirks and perils of new technology. Stephen Oram writes near-future science fiction, exploring the intersection of messy humans and imperfect technology. He also works with scientists and technologists on projects that explore possible future out…
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Claire chatted to Patricia Shaw from Aberystwyth University about home assistance robots, and robot learning and development. Patricia Shaw is a Senior Lecturer in Computer Science and Robotics at Aberystwyth University. Her current research interests include technology for assistive living and she is currently leading on establishing a new Smart H…
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Claire chatted to Andrew Starr from Cranfield University all about robot maintenance and railway inspection robots. Andrew Starr holds a PhD in condition monitoring of robotic production systems and is a Chartered Engineer. His career started with British Aerospace, before working for the University of Manchester, University of Huddersfield, and th…
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Claire chatted to Antonia Tzemanaki from the University of Bristol all about hand exoskeletons, robotic hands, and teleoperation. Antonia Tzemanaki is Senior Lecturer in Robotics at the University of Bristol and the Bristol Robotics Laboratory. Prior to this, she was Lecturer in Mechatronics at the University of the West of England. Her research in…
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Claire chatted to Edward Johns from Imperial College London, all about robotic manipulators, learning, and artificial intelligence. Edward Johns is the Director of the Robot Learning Lab at Imperial College London, where he is also a Senior Lecturer. He completed a PhD in Computer Vision at Imperial College and was then a Research Fellow in the Dys…
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Claire chatted to Maria Jose (Marisé) Galvez Trigo from Cardiff University all about human-robot interaction, machine learning, and accessibility. Maria Jose Galvez Trigo (Marisé) is a Lecturer in the School of Computer Science and Informatics at Cardiff University, and part of the Human-centred Computing (HCC) Research Section and its Subgroup in …
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Claire chatted to Rafael Lopez from Robotnik Automation all about mobile robots, logistics, and inspection. Rafael Lopez has a degree in Telecommunications Engineering. He worked in research and development at Althea Productos Industriales before joining IBM as a System Engineer for wide area networks in Madrid and Barcelona. He co-founded Robotnik…
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Claire chatted to Virginia Ruiz Garate from Mondragon University all about assistive robotics, mobility, and bio-inspired control. Virginia Ruiz Garate obtained her PhD in 2016 in bio-inspired control for leg exoskeletons at the Université Catholique de Louvain-la-Neuve in Belgium. Later, she worked on new bio-inspired grasping methods for robotic …
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Claire chatted to Josh Caputo from Humotech all about robotic prostheses, exoskeletons and prototyping. Josh Caputo has a background as a multi-disciplinary engineer focused on robotics. He developed a passion for wearable technology working in the Experimental Biomechatronics Laboratory at Carnegie Mellon University. His early work focused on stud…
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Claire chatted to Elizabeth Sklar from the University of Lincoln all about agricultural robotics, human-robot teams, and sustainability. Elizabeth Sklar is a Professor of Agri-Robotics and Research Director at the Lincoln Institute for Agri-food Technology (LIAT), at the University of Lincoln, UK. Her research investigates the implementation of int…
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Claire chatted to Rolf Mueller from Virginia Tech all about biomimicry, flapping-wing flight, sensing, and artificial intelligence. Rolf Mueller has studied bat biosonar from the perspectives of biophysics and bioinspired engineering for over 20 years. He has worked on statistical signal processing of sonar signals in complex, natural environments,…
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Claire chatted to Kris Dorsey from Northeastern University all about wearable soft robots, healthcare and rehabilitation. Kris Dorsey is an associate professor in the departments of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Physical Therapy, Movement, and Rehabilitation Sciences and a core faculty member at the Institute for Experiential Robotics at …
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Claire chatted to Jims Marchang from Sheffield Hallam University all about security, privacy, and trust in healthcare robots. Jims Marchang completed his Ph.D. from the CSCAN Research Laboratory, University of Plymouth, UK. He is currently a Sr. Lecturer in Cybersecurity and leads a Secure Intelligent Cyber research cluster and co-lead Digital, AI,…
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Claire chatted to Katarzyna Szopinska from KUKA all about all about software and hardware for medical robotics. Katarzyna Szopinska studied medical and mechanical engineering in both Warsaw and Munich. She got her first professional experience at Brainlab in Munich and then at KUKA where she started as mechanical engineer to later switch to portfol…
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Claire chatted to Rav Chunilal from Sellafield all about robotics and AI for nuclear decommissioning. Rav Chunilal is the Head of Robotics & Artificial Intelligence at Sellafield Ltd, the UK's largest nuclear site. He is responsible for developing and deploying Robotics and AI technologies to decommission the site safely, efficiently, and cost-effe…
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Claire chatted to Ayse Kucukyilmaz from the University of Nottingham about collaboration, conflict and failure in human-robot interactions. Ayse Kucukyilmaz is Assistant Professor in the School of Computer Science at the University of Nottingham and a founding member of the CHART research group. Her research focus is human-centered robotics, where …
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Claire chatted to Jorvon (Odd-Jayy) Moss from Digikey about making robots at home, and robot design and aesthetics. Commonly known as Odd-Jayy, Jorvon Moss is an accomplished Maker best known for his Robotic Oddities. Jayy’s art background, BFA in Illustration, and self-taught electronics skills have combined to help launch his career and promote t…
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Claire chatted to Masoumeh (Iran) Mansouri from the University of Birmingham about culturally sensitive robots and planning in complex environments. Masoumeh Mansouri is an Associate Professor in the School of Computer Science at the University of Birmingham. Her research includes two complementary areas: (i) developing hybrid robot planning method…
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Claire chatted to Carl Strathearn from Edinburgh Napier University all about humanoid robots, realistic robot faces and speech. Carl Strathearn is a researcher interested in creating assistive social humanoid robots with embodied AI systems that appear, function, and interact like humans. He believes that creating realistic humanoid robots is signi…
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Claire chatted to Ffion Llewellyn from Oshen about sea-faring robots and ocean sensing. Ffion Llewellyn graduated from Imperial College London in 2022 with a masters in Aeronautical Engineering. Following this, she joined Oshen who are building low cost, autonomous micro-vessels for remote ocean sensing. Ffion has been focused on the integration an…
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Claire chatted to Lorenzo Jamone from Queen Mary University of London all about robotic hands, dexterity, and the sense of touch. Lorenzo Jamone is a Senior Lecturer in Robotics at Queen Mary University of London, where he is the founder and director of the CRISP group: Cognitive Robotics and Intelligent Systems for the People. He received a PhD de…
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Claire chatted to Kate Devlin from King's College London about the social and ethical implications of robotics and AI. We touch on a range of different topics from concerns over job losses and privacy to issues of inequality, trust and power. In the second half of the interview, we talk a bit about robotics, AI and relationships. The conversation i…
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Claire chatted to Guillaume Doisy from Dexory about autonomous warehouse robots, mobile robotics, and software. Guillaume Doisy is the current Lead Systems Architect at Dexory, the leading UK robotics and AI company building state-of-the-art fully autonomous mobile robots for use in warehouses. Guillaume has a wide range of responsibilities includi…
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Claire chatted to Sara Adela Abad Guaman from University College London about adaptable robots inspired by nature. Sara Adela Abad Guaman is a Lecturer at University College London's Mechanical Engineering Department. She is also the head of the Adaptable Robotics Lab. Inspired by biological organisms, Sara aims to develop robots and mechanical sys…
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Robot Talk will be back for Season 4 on the 29th September - make sure you're subscribed to be the first to hear the latest episodes.Di Claire Asher
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Robotics, artificial intelligence and autonomous machines have become a necessity for our future world but what are the implications of robots for society and how much influence does science fiction have on how we embrace our new friends? In this special live recording at the Great Exhibition Road Festival, Claire chatted to Glyn Morgan (Science Mu…
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This week, Claire chatted to Robert Richardson from the University of Leeds all about 3D printing, robot design, and infrastructure repair. Robert Richardson is Professor of Robotics in the School of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Leeds, and executive chair of EPSRC UK-RAS network. His research interests include robotics for civil infr…
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This week, Claire chatted to Sara Bernardini from Royal Holloway University of London all about decision-making, reconfigurable robots, and oceanography. Sara Bernardini is a Professor of AI at Royal Holloway University of London, the Principal Research Scientist in AI and Data Science at the National Oceanography Centre and a Fellow at the Alan Tu…
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This week, Claire chatted to James Kell from Jacobs Engineering UK all about civil infrastructure, nuclear robotics and jet engine inspection. James Kell is Robotics Technical Director at Jacobs Engineering UK. He is responsible for the internal robotics technical strategy and is actively looking to apply the decades worth of robotics and remote ha…
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This week, Claire chatted to Elena De Momi from the the Polytechnic University of Milan all about surgical robotics, artificial intelligence, and the upcoming ICRA robotics conference in London. Elena De Momi received her MSc in Biomedical Engineering in 2002, PhD in Bioengineering in 2006, and she is currently Associate Professor in the Electronic…
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This week, Claire chatted to Nick Hawes from the University of Oxford all about robot decision-making, long-term autonomy, and artificial intelligence. Nick Hawes is a Professor of AI and Robotics at the University of Oxford, where he directs the Oxford Robotics Institute (ORI). Within the ORI he leads the Goal-Oriented Autonomous Long-Lived System…
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