Rice College laptop scientist Lydia Kavraki has been elected to the Nationwide Academy of Engineering (NAE), one of many highest skilled honors accorded to an engineer, for her work on “creating randomized motion-planning algorithms for robotics and robotics-inspired strategies in biomedicine.”
Kavraki is Rice’s Kenneth and Audrey Kennedy Professor of Computing, and a professor of laptop science, electrical and laptop engineering, mechanical engineering, and bioengineering. She additionally serves as director of the Ken Kennedy Institute, whose mission is to resolve international challenges by fostering collaborative analysis and innovation in synthetic intelligence (AI) and computing.
Kavraki’s election to the NAE acknowledges the transformative impression of her work in robotics, the place her improvement of sampling-based, motion-planning algorithms has revolutionized the sphere by lowering planning instances from minutes to a small fraction of a second. This work underlies Kavraki’s imaginative and prescient for a world the place “robots are capable of work safely and seamlessly alongside people,” opening new frontiers in human-robot collaboration, from industrial automation to area exploration and robot-assisted surgical procedure.
“It’s an unimaginable honor to affix this neighborhood, and this recognition is a testomony to the dedication of my college students and collaborators who’ve labored by my facet to push the boundaries of robotics and computational biomedicine,” Kavraki mentioned. “I look ahead to persevering with our work to develop clever programs that profit society.”
Kavraki’s work has had a profound impression on educational analysis and trade. The Open Movement Planning Library, developed and maintained by her lab since 2008, is a vital device broadly built-in into software program programs utilized in industrial, area and medical functions. Her contributions to NASA’s Robonaut2 and her analysis on robots for astronaut help underscore her affect on the way forward for bodily AI. In biomedicine, her computational instruments present state-of-the-art help for clinicians, together with on the College of Texas MD Anderson Most cancers Middle, the place Kavraki’s APE-Gen device has helped information personalised immunotherapy.
“Lydia Kavraki’s election to the Nationwide Academy of Engineering is a well-deserved recognition of her groundbreaking contributions to robotics, biomedicine and synthetic intelligence,” mentioned Rice President Reginald DesRoches. “Her diligent and modern work on this space has not solely superior the sphere however has additionally impressed generations of engineers and researchers. We at Rice College are immensely happy with Lydia’s achievements and the impression she continues to have on science and society.”
Past her analysis, Kavraki can also be a devoted mentor and chief. Furthermore, her dedication to AI innovation as an ethics-informed apply is underscored in current initiatives reminiscent of tackling the dangers of bias in information and machine studying fashions for immunotherapy and privateness considerations related to robots working in human environments.
“I’m deeply grateful for the numerous alternatives I’ve been afforded at Rice – significantly the privilege of collaborating with extraordinary colleagues and college students who’ve regularly enriched and impressed my work,” Kavraki mentioned. “I share this distinction with my college students, whose dedication and creativity have been pivotal in my journey, and with my household who has supported me each step of the best way. I additionally prolong my heartfelt because of the colleagues who supported my nomination. I look ahead to working with fellow NAE members, combining our collective experience to uplift and enhance our world.”
Kavraki, a member of the Nationwide Academy of Medication and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, is the recipient of quite a few awards and distinctions, together with recognition as a fellow of the American Affiliation for the Development of Science, the Affiliation for the Development of Synthetic Intelligence and the American Institute for Medical and Organic Engineering. She has authored over 400 analysis publications and a robotics textbook. Throughout her tenure at Rice, she has mentored over 30 PhD college students and 20 postdocs, whereas she has supervised greater than 100 undergraduates on analysis initiatives.
“Lydia’s election to the Nationwide Academy of Engineering is a testomony to her groundbreaking contributions to robotics, AI and biomedical computing,” mentioned Luay Nakhleh, the William and Stephanie Sick Dean of the George R. Brown Faculty of Engineering and Computing. “She has formed the sphere and had a profound impression on society by means of her cutting-edge analysis, excellent mentoring and intensive service to the educational neighborhood at massive. Lydia operates at a degree of excellence all of us aspire to, and we’re extremely proud that she is part of the Rice Engineering and Computing neighborhood.”
Kavraki is amongst 128 new U.S. members and 22 worldwide members elected to the NAE’s 2025 class. The newly elected members can be formally inducted in the course of the NAE’s annual assembly on Oct. 5, 2025.
The checklist of all newly elected members will be considered on the organization website.
Kavraki joins 16 Rice college who’re members of the academy — present college members Pedro Alvarez, Richard Baraniuk, DesRoches, Abbas Firoozabadi, Gene Frantz, Naomi Halas, Karen Lozano, Antonios Mikos, Ramamoorthy Ramesh, Rebecca Richards-Kortum, Pol Spanos, Richard Tapia, Jim Tour and Moshe Vardi — together with professors emeritus George Hirasaki and Ronald Nordgren.
