The UC San Diego Contextual Robotics Institute will hold its 8th annual Forum on November 14, 2023.
Join us to connect with San Diego's top robotics firms, as well as researchers and students working on cutting-edge robotics. The theme of the 2023 Forum is Robots in the Wild. From fenced-in beginnings, robots have evolved to play a crucial role in our daily lives, enhancing safety, efficiency, and even improving human health. This year's CRI Forum explores their wide-ranging applications in manufacturing, warehousing, transportation, home assistance, surgery, and environmental monitoring, addressing fundamental technologies and emerging use-cases.
The day-long program features presentations and panel discussions from some of the region's largest robotics companies as well as posters and demonstrations of the groundbreaking research happening at UC San Diego.
Read a 2022 Forum wrap-up here.
Robotic News
Surgeons Use Teleoperated Humanoid Robots to Perform Live Surgery – a World First
July 8, 2026
For the first time, two teleoperated humanoid robots have been used to complete two surgeries during a preclinical trial, researchers report in the July 8 issue of the journal Nature. The work is the result of a collaboration between a team of engineers and a team of surgeons at the University of California San Diego. Full Story
Tania Morimoto Recognized with MassRobotics Rising Star in Robotics Medal
November 5, 2025
The 3rd Annual MassRobotics Robotics Medal award, sponsored by Amazon Robotics, is presented to Dr. Maja Matari?, Chaired and Distinguished Professor of Computer Science, Viterbi School of Engineering, University of Southern California, for her pioneering work in the field of socially assistive robots and for making significant advancements to the field of distributed robots and learning in human-robot systems. Dr. Tania Morimoto, Associate Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of California, San Diego, is awarded the MassRobotics Rising Star in Robotics Medal for her contributions to novel soft and flexible medical robots and human-machine interfaces designed to improve access to high-quality care. Full Story
This Robotic Skin Allows Tiny Robots to Navigate Complex, Fragile Environments
October 15, 2025
Researchers developed a soft robotic skin that enables vine robots that are just a few millimeters wide to navigate convoluted paths and fragile environments. To accomplish this, the researchers integrated a very thin layer of actuators made of liquid crystal elastomer at strategic locations in the soft skin. The robot is steered by controlling the pressure inside its body and temperature of the actuators. Full Story