Robotics Café brings APAC robotics community together

A new online seminar series is connecting researchers, students, industry practitioners and government representatives working in autonomous robotics across the Asia-Pacific region.

Robotics Café, organised by Associate Professor Aditya Paranjape (Monash University), Professor Sujit P B (IISER Bhopal) and Dr Sandeep Manjanna (Plaksha University), provides a platform for participants to share research, exchange ideas and build collaborations.

The series launched with a presentation by Professor Debasish Ghose from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), exploring the intersection of guidance theory and aerial robotics.

The organisers hope the initiative will help address a gap in the regional robotics landscape by creating an open forum that welcomes diverse participation from academia, industry and government.

Students are encouraged to use the platform to present research papers and thesis work, while future sessions will feature speakers from across academia and industry, including invited international experts.

Associate Professor Paranjape says "We believe academic researchers, industry practitioners and government representatives need to talk to each other in an open, relaxed and frank atmosphere. Lasting impact and social good are realised only when all three find a way to work together."

Held weekly online, Robotics Café aims to foster meaningful connections and strengthen collaboration across the autonomous robotics ecosystem.

The long-term ambition is for Robotics Café to evolve into an in-person forum or conference, with an emphasis on diverse participation rather than scale.

Organisers hope to establish a consistent community of attendees from academia, industry and government, while gradually expanding participation across the region.