Last week at ETF Robotics center at Palata nauke – Zadužbina Miodraga Kostića was filled with inspiring activities, but two visits stood out in particular.
The first came from academia. We had the pleasure of hosting Nikola Popovic, who earned his PhD at ETH Zürich and is currently working at INSAIT – Institute for Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence and Technology in Sofia. Alongside his research, Nikola is also actively contributing to the AI community in Serbia through PSIML, an annual seminar that brings together university students passionate about the fast-evolving field of machine learning.
Our conversation with Nikola revolved around shared research interests, overlapping topics, and opportunities for collaboration, with a special 𝗳𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗵𝘆𝘀𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗜, an emerging field that is especially close to our team’s interests. Questions around how machines perceive, understand, reason, and interact with the physical world in real time are at the core of what excites and motivates us in robotics.
Our second visit came from the world of industry and entrepreneurship. We had the opportunity to meet Elvis Nava, CEO of mimic , who shared the story of how mimic was founded an inspiring reminder of why startups are created in the first place. Not because it is easy, but because sometimes the problem that fascinates and drives you cannot be solved in any other way.
Our discussion with Elvis also strongly focused on Physical AI, this time from the perspective of building real systems and products. Mimic’s work in robotic manipulation and grasping opened up an important exchange around how these ideas move from research into practical applications, an area that is highly relevant to our team’s own interests.
Taken together, these two visits helped us reflect on how to further align our work with current trends in robotics and AI, while also thinking carefully about the 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀. Through collaboration with institutions and companies working at the forefront of these fields, we see valuable space not only for stronger academic exchange, but also for opening pathways that can shape our students’ future professional development and careers.
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