In a time when there are so many flashy robot demos being promoted in the media, it is worth remembering that sometimes those robots are seen as intimidating and threatening, especially when deployed in workplaces. When robots are unwanted, people find ways to shove them aside -- sometimes subtly, sometimes violently. Drawing from human-computer interaction research, this talk will explore ways to make robots more invisible-in-use, offering examples of how we might invent a future that is more human-centered by design. Sometimes, the most useful robots are the ones that hide in plain sight.

Bio: 

Leila Takayama is a Human-Robot Interaction specialist in the psychology of people's interactions with robotic products and services. She is VP of Design and Human-Robot Interaction at Robust.AI, where they are developing collaborative mobile robots that support warehouse operations. Prior to joining Robust.AI, she was a tenured associate professor at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She also worked as a full-time researcher at Willow Garage and GoogleX.

In her consulting work at Hoku Labs, she translates human-robot interaction research into actionable recommendations for the design of robotic products and services. Her clients include Fortune 100 companies, tech startups, and non-profit organizations. She has contributed to over a dozen robot products that have shipped, including drones in the air; industrial, service, and consumer robots on the ground; and uncrewed robotic systems in the ocean. More info: https://www.hokulabs.com/