PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Agoston Eiben

Also known as A.E. Eiben, Guszti Eiben, Gusz Eiben, Gusti Eiben, Ágoston E. Eiben

Agoston Eiben is an artificial-intelligence professor whose research connects evolutionary computing with robotics. He studied mathematics at Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest, earned a computer science PhD at Eindhoven University of Technology in 1991, and coauthored a Markov-chain analysis of genetic algorithms. With coauthors, he wrote the 2003 textbook Introduction to Evolutionary Computing and a 2015 Nature article about artificial evolution in physical systems. His robotics work included a 2017 robot-reproduction study, the four-year Autonomous Robot Evolution project launched in 2018, and a 2021 review of robot-evolution ethics. As of October 2026, he is a full professor of artificial intelligence at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.

Now at
Network Institute
Born
1961
Links
Website

Years link to their sources.

Timeline

  1. By 1991

    Mathematics and a PhD

    He studies mathematics at Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest and first encounters AI during his master's. He earns a computer science PhD at Eindhoven University of Technology in 1991.

  2. 1991

    A Markov chain analysis

    In 1991, he coauthors “Global convergence of genetic algorithms: a Markov chain analysis” with E. H. L. Aarts.

  3. 2003

    An evolutionary computing textbook

    With J. A. C. Smith, he publishes the Springer textbook Introduction to Evolutionary Computing in 2003.

  4. 2015

    Artificial evolution in hardware

    In 2015, he and J. E. Smith publish the Nature article “From evolutionary computation to the evolution of things,” introducing artificial evolution in physical systems as an emerging research area.

  5. 2017

    Robots that reproduce

    In 2017, he coauthors a proof-of-concept study in which two robots complete a life cycle and produce a new robot.

  6. 2018

    Autonomous Robot Evolution

    In 2018, he joins colleagues from the University of York and VU Amsterdam in the four-year EPSRC-funded Autonomous Robot Evolution project. The team aims to build robots that reproduce and evolve in real time and real space.

  7. 2021

    Robot evolution ethics

    In 2021, he coauthors “Robot Evolution: Ethical Concerns” with Jacintha Ellers, Gerben Meynen, and Sven Nyholm. The review argues that evolutionary robots can weaken human control and create new hazards.

  8. As of October 2026

    Professor at Vrije Universiteit

    He is a full professor of artificial intelligence in VU Amsterdam's Faculty of Science. He also holds full professorships at the Network Institute and the Computational Intelligence research programme.

Career

  1. NowVrije Universiteit AmsterdamFull Professor of Artificial Intelligence
  2. NowNetwork InstituteFull Professor

Education

  1. 1991Eindhoven University of TechnologyPhD
  2. Eötvös Loránd UniversityMaster's

From the biography.

  1. More people shaping AI studied at Massachusetts Institute of Technology than at any other institutionIncludes Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. We estimate where the people shaping AI studied and where their careers led. Massachusetts Institute of Technology leads with 467 former students, including 291 recorded doctorates.
  2. The company share of AI researchers’ top papers was 31% in 2020–2024 and 8% in 1970–1974Includes Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. We estimate where the people shaping AI worked when their most-cited papers appeared: the company share was 31% in 2020–2024 and 8% in 1970–1974, and Google led all organizations in 2020–2024.
  3. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology trained or employed 44 of the 187 AI major-prize winners, more than any other universityIncludes Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology trained or employed 44 of the 187 AI major-prize winners, more than any other university. We compare doctorate and 5+ year employment links, career timing and current workplaces for 187 major-prize and 1,111 best-paper winners.
  4. Google had the most people shaping AI every year from 2014 to 2025Our estimates of which organizations employed the most people shaping AI each year from 1955 to 2025, tracing the shift from university labs to companies.

Sources and credits

Photo: We have no published photo of Agoston Eiben yet. Send us a free-licensed photo.

  1. Robot Farms, Artificial Life and Second-Order Engineering ii.tudelft.nl. Checked 20 October 2026.
  2. Global convergence of genetic algorithms: a Markov chain analysis research.tilburguniversity.edu. Checked 20 October 2026.
  3. Introduction to Evolutionary Computing research.vu.nl. Checked 20 October 2026.
  4. From evolutionary computation to the evolution of things research.vu.nl. Checked 20 October 2026.
  5. Real-World Evolution of Robot Morphologies: A Proof of Concept research.vu.nl. Checked 20 October 2026.
  6. Autonomous Robot Evolution: from cradle to grave alanwinfield.blogspot.com. Checked 20 October 2026.
  7. Autonomous Robot Evolution york.ac.uk. Checked 20 October 2026.
  8. Robot Evolution: Ethical Concerns frontiersin.org. Checked 20 October 2026.
  9. prof. dr. A.E Eiben vu.nl. Checked 20 October 2026.