Women are making waves in innovation and cutting-edge technology all around the world as a result of the growing influence of digitalization. For instance, the industry’s use of AI is expanding quickly and steadily bridging the gender and diversity gaps. In a similar vein, a remarkable number of women have advanced robotics technology. In turn, this increases the exposure of women in the field who might otherwise go unnoticed. As their numbers increase, so does the cumulative global impact of their activities. A lot of them are laying the foundation for the future and serving as positive role models for the younger generation. In the following post, we will be talking about the top 10 influential women in Robotics in 2024.
Danielle Applestone created the Other Machine while working for Otherlab; it is a desktop CNC machine with intuitive machine control programs that was funded by DARPA. In addition, Applestone has led startups such as Daughters of Rosie and Sqrle, where she assists creators in turning their ideas into plans and assembling cohesive teams. To solve the workforce shortage in the American manufacturing sector, she is committed to placing more women in secure production positions with a goal, potential for promotion, and benefits. That definitely makes her one of the influential women in robotics.
Kanako Harada is in charge of the Cabinet Office of Japan’s ImPACT initiative, “Bionic Humanoids Propelling New Industrial Revolution.” She is a researcher in the field of smart surgical robotic systems, with a special interest in leveraging bioengineering advancements to create surgical robots for microsurgery, particularly for pediatric, ocular, and neurosurgery. Her work involves automating surgical robots while taking into account empirical evaluations of surgical abilities performed on high-fidelity patient/organ models with sensors (Humanoids) and simulated reality exercises. Such innovative works put her among the influential women in robotics.
With a strong 14-year background in R&D and product development, she is a leader in AI and robots. Her expertise in AI for human-robot interaction (HRI) encompasses social robotics, linguistic systems, collaborative mobile manipulation, multimodal perception & interfaces, and design/visualization tools. She oversaw teams, coded, and designed these systems. She has also worked with teams to create hardware devices that incorporate these technologies. She has experience with every layer of the programming stack for robots. She also works as an entrepreneur in the field of AI development.
Dr. Madeline Gannon is a multifaceted designer who creates better ways for humans and robots to connect. She combines methods from robotics, computer science, design, and art to create fresh perspectives on human-robot interactions. Gannon, who goes by the moniker “The Robot Whisperer,” specializes in getting robots to do things they weren’t designed to do, such as reshaping enormous factory robots into intelligent, breathing mechanical creatures or training swarms of autonomous machines to act like a pack of dogs. According to Gannon, who sees technology as a cultural medium, her work is tailored to appeal to communities in both science and society.
Emily is a cognitive neuroscientist who is also a dancer. She works at ETH Zürich, where she co-directs the Social Brain in Action Laboratory and leads the Social Brain Sciences (SBS) Team. She uses multifaceted instructional paradigms (often involving dance, acrobatics, and music), interpersonal actions, and robots, in conjunction with brain scans and cerebral stimulation to explore how human brains and behaviors are shaped by various kinds of experiences over the course of a lifetime and across cultures. She is the principal investigator on the “Social Robots” European Research Council Starting Grant, which will run from 2016 to 2024.
Working as a senior lecturer in computer science and robotics at Ashesi University, Ghana, Korsah conducts lectures in artificial intelligence, robotics, algorithms, and programming. Her efforts are focused on empowering the importance of learning robotics in the country. Korsah helped establish the African Robotics Network (AFRON) in 2012 with the goal of promoting robotics education across Africa and encouraging African robotics groups to interact. Korsah has been interviewed by BBC News about how people and computers can work together in the future and complement one another’s skills.
American mechanical engineer Alice Agogino is renowned for her work in promoting women and people of color into engineering as well as her research in artificial intelligence, CAD, intelligent learning systems, and wireless sensors. In 1979, she started her own company, Agogino Engineering, which is still operational today. She also founded Squishy Robots, a company that creates quickly deployable movable sensing robots for space missions, surveillance, and disaster relief. She also works on cutting-edge emerging innovations like fusion robotics, portable sensing, machine learning, big data fusion, and smart IoT.
Heather Justice is a software developer who works as a Mars Exploration Rover Driver at NASA JPL. As a 16-year-old, she claimed that seeing the first Rover arrive on Mars had motivated her to pursue her passions in engineering and computers. Her enthusiasm enabled her to complete an internship at NASA JPL. Before taking on the position of Software Engineer at NASA, she created an operator interface to support programmable mobility and alertness in a system of mobile robots carrying out coordinated operations.
Since May 2019, Susanne Bieller has served as the International Federation of Robotics’ General Secretary. Susanne is a seasoned expert in international associations who has a wealth of contacts and knowledge in robotics. She has an extensive understanding of the overseas robotics market as well as advances in technology. She is actively involved in ongoing robotics advocacy subjects pertaining to the ethical, legal, sociological, and economic implications of robots and AI. Susanne has been chosen as one of the “Top 10 Women in Robotics Industry” in 2020 and one of the “30 Women in Robotics You Need to Know About” in 2019.
Cynthia Breazeal is an entrepreneur and robotics scientist from the United States. She co-founded the robotic personal assistant firm Jibo in 2012, where she served as chief scientist and chief experience officer. Presently, she directs the Personal Robots group at the Media Lab while serving as a professor of media arts and sciences at MIT. Her most recent study has been on the subject of going about daily life while AI is there and progressively learning the long-term effects of social robots. Time magazine’s list of the 25 greatest inventions of 2017 had Jibo on its cover.
And those were the top 10 influential women in robotics in 2024. Women are involved in all facets of robotics, leading the way for the most accommodative advancements since robotics is the approach of the future. The women in this list have individually made notable contributions in advancing the world of robotics and as time and technology progresses, there will be many more surprising developments in the years to come.
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