ROBOTS IN THE REAL WORLD
WORKING WITH HUMANS

Our research teams solve pressing robotics challenges in three overarching areas:
autonomous systems, cyber-physical technologies, and medical robotics.

Many of  the robotics systems we develop are able to adapt and evolve based
on the people and situation - the context - they encounter.

Faculty, students, and professional research staff in each of the
Contextual Robotics Institute's three core research areas will be housed in
collaborative research laboratories - collaborations - in Franklin Antonio Hall,
the newest engineering building at UC San Diego.

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Robotic News


Tania Morimoto Recognized with MassRobotics Rising Star in Robotics Medal

Tania Morimoto Recognized with MassRobotics Rising Star in Robotics Medal

November 5, 2025

The 3rd Annual MassRobotics Robotics Medal award, sponsored by Amazon Robotics, is presented to Dr. Maja Matari?, Chaired and Distinguished Professor of Computer Science, Viterbi School of Engineering, University of Southern California, for her pioneering work in the field of socially assistive robots and for making significant advancements to the field of distributed robots and learning in human-robot systems. Dr. Tania Morimoto, Associate Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of California, San Diego, is awarded the MassRobotics Rising Star in Robotics Medal for her contributions to novel soft and flexible medical robots and human-machine interfaces designed to improve access to high-quality care.    Full Story


This Robotic Skin Allows Tiny Robots to Navigate Complex, Fragile Environments

This Robotic Skin Allows Tiny Robots to Navigate Complex, Fragile Environments

October 15, 2025

Researchers developed a soft robotic skin that enables vine robots that are just a few millimeters wide to navigate convoluted paths and fragile environments. To accomplish this, the researchers integrated a very thin layer of actuators made of liquid crystal elastomer at strategic locations in the soft skin. The robot is steered by controlling the pressure inside its body and temperature of the actuators.   Full Story


The Jacobs School Represents at San Diego Comic-Con

The Jacobs School Represents at San Diego Comic-Con

August 25, 2025

From discussing the best invention to examining the way AI has been represented in movies, Jacobs School researchers took the stage at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con.    Full Story


News Archive

Seminars

Jun 03, 2024

"Metric-Semantic Mapping and Task Planning for Autonomous Robots"

Monday, June 3rd @ 2pm PDT

Location: Franklin Antonio Hall (FAH) 4202 & Zoom

Speaker: Dr. Nikolay Atanasov

May 20, 2024

Sustainable 'Relationship' with Interactive Robots

Monday, May 20th @ 2pm PDT

Location: Zoom

Speaker:  Dr. AJung Moon

May 13, 2024

"Cognitively-Aware Adaptive Automation to Enhance Human Learning"

Monday, May 13th @ 2pm PDT

Location: Franklin Antonio Hall (FAH) 4202 & Zoom 

Speaker: Dr. Neera Jain