Socially Assistive Robotics

I am a chaired professor of computer science, neuroscience and pediatrics at the University of Southern California. I do research in socially assistive robotics, a research field I co-founded, which focuses on developing robots that can help people through social rather than physical interaction. My lab works on developing human-robot interaction algorithms for children with autism, elderly with Alzheimer's, stroke survivors, teens at risk for Type 2 diabetes, among others. I also run a startup aimed at improving people's quality of life through socially assistive robotics. For more information, see EngineerGirl at https://www.engineergirl.org/3053/Maja-Mataric

I moved to the US from Yugoslavia when I was 16, and my uncle, an aerospace engineer, made it clear that I should take up a college major that will make me employable. He said "computers are the future, study computers" and he was so right. I pursued a major in computer science, and found I both liked it and was good at it. If one of those components had not been true, I might have ended up in something else. I minored in cognitive science, which is now also a key part of my research. When I was in college, computer science was not part of engineering; now it is in many universities, but it is also growing into an entirely separate area of its own, given its scale, diversity, and role in 21st century society. I had no idea how good my choice was back when I made it, but I always tell students: you can't go wrong with engineering: you'll always get a job and you'll be doing something interesting and useful."

I don't have a typical day. On any given day I might: meet with PhD students one on one to talk about an interesting research project; meet with a stroke patient/parent of a child with autism/etc. to learn what their real challenges are and think about how we might develop technologies to help them; present a talk at a conference or to K-12 STEM audiences or to empower women in corporate settings; advising companies on the potential of robotics and AI; writing grant proposals to support my research lab; working with the engineerings in my company to make choices about the product we are developing; presenting our product to venture capitalists to raise funds toward the next stage of development; meeting with university officials about how to make the university a more productive and effective place, and so much more...

I firmly believe that the purpose of engineering is to solve people's problems and make the world a better place. So that means I get to make the world a better place each day, by choosing the right problems to work on and the right people to work with. I like being on the cutting edge and working on things that are as yet undiscovered and new, yet have huge potential.

To learn more, including my proudest moment, challenges I’ve met, my dreams and goals, and my inspiration, go to, EngineerGirl at https://www.engineergirl.org/3053/Maja-Mataric (Thanks to EngineerGirl for sharing access to this biography)

spending time with my 3 childrenrunningwalking the dogdancing