Roboticists,

Join us for the next seminar this Friday, when Nathan Kirchner will talk about his startup trying to make our lives as roboticists easier.  Coffee, cake, and stories of robot entrepreneurship.  What could be more delightful on a Friday morning?

Rogers 230, 10am

cheers

-- Bill

Nathan Kirchner, Workr Labs Inc.

My name is Nathan & I think...

interacting with robots is needlessly painful

Abstract: There is considerable desire to introduce large numbers of robots into our everyday, but there are some core challenges - one of the top ones being that interacting with robots is needlessly painful! We, the creators, have been misguidedly adding to this pain in an attempt to address the common phenomena that users expect 100% performance from machines.. even though they don’t necessarily perform at that level. This body of work deeply probes this question to yield practical insights & to inform efforts on both the fundamental paradigm for robotic systems & for the core capabilities prioritised for delivery

Fortuitously, there is an opportunity to build on the considerable wealth of high quality artefacts & knowledge already out there. We have unprecedented access to advanced technical core capabilities such as sensing & perception, reasoning, manipulation & to deep knowledge in sociocontexutal behaviours-cues to meaning mapping. We can to proactively leverage these & interact with them to achieve ‘better’ outcomes.

Bio: With over a decade of experience as a faculty member at institutions like Stanford University & the University of Technology Sydney and a diverse educational background encompassing Robotics, Mechatronics, Psychology, & Innovation & Entrepreneurship, Nathan brings a wealth of expertise to the table. His qualifications include recognition as the Most Innovative Engineer by Engineers Australia & being named in the Brilliant Ten by US Popular Science. As the Founding Director of Robotics Australia Group & a Ventures Partner at a specialised robotics-focused Venture Capital firm, he has played pivotal roles in shaping the landscape of robotics & advanced manufacturing with a HRI perspective.