Former ISS astronaut and current CEO of XPRIZE, Anousheh Ansari delivered the keynote address at ‘Robotics Automation and AI – pushing the frontiers of human potential’, a special event held at the National Robotarium on 31 January.

The event, co-hosted by National Robotarium residents Touchlab Ltd., was attended by over 180 academic and industry professionals with many keen to share ideas to develop the use of robotics, automation and artificial intelligence for different industries, including the space sector.

Following Anousheh’s motivational talk on ‘fulfilling your potential’, attendees also heard from Stewart Miller, CEO of the National Robotarium, Dr Zaki Husseien, CEO of Touchlab Ltd, whose biomimetic e-skin system made it to the finals of the 2022 XPRIZE competition in California, and Professor of Robotics and co-academic lead of the National Robotarium, Sethu Vijayakumar.

Stewart Miller said: “I’m thrilled that we had the opportunity to host this special event at the National Robotarium, which was only made possible through the existing partnership we have with Touchlab, our first industry residents, who moved into the facility in October 2022..

“Events such as these are a great, and positive, example of what can be accomplished by forging strong connections and expanding the UK’s robotics network.  At the National Robotarium, we are committed to advancing our knowledge and technologies within the robotics sphere, and supporting a wide range of sectors to ensure we can respond to future challenges and opportunities for the benefit of society.

“As Anousheh’s talk highlighted, anything’s possible if the will is there.”