PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Barbara Webb

Barbara Webb is a biorobotics researcher whose work builds computational and robot models of insect perception and behaviour. She earned a psychology degree at Sydney in 1988 and an AI PhD at Edinburgh in 1993, then held posts at Edinburgh, Nottingham, and Stirling before joining Edinburgh's School of Informatics in 2003. Her work includes a 2012 review of insect navigation and learning, a 2025 ant-inspired robotic gripper, and a 2026 report on a bee-inspired navigation robot. As of October 2026, she is Professor of Biorobotics at the University of Edinburgh and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

Works
6
Citations
0
h-index
0
Badges

Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 19 October 2026.

Timeline

  1. 1988–1993

    Psychology and AI degrees

    She earns a B.Sc. in Psychology at the University of Sydney in 1988 and completes a Ph.D. in Artificial Intelligence at the University of Edinburgh in 1993.

  2. 1993–2003

    Teaching across three universities

    She lectures at Edinburgh from 1993 to 1995, Nottingham from 1995 to 1998, and Stirling from 1999 to 2003, then joins Edinburgh's School of Informatics in May 2003.

  3. 2010

    Professor of Biorobotics

    She is promoted to Professor of Biorobotics in 2010 and studies insect perception through computational and physical robot models.

  4. 2012

    Reviewing insect cognition

    In 2012, she reviews evidence for insect navigation and learning in her article on cognition in insects.

  5. 2022

    A Royal Society of Edinburgh fellowship

    She is elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2022.

  6. March 2025

    An ant-inspired robotic gripper

    In March 2025, she leads research on a prototype hairy robotic gripper that mimics ants' hairy jaws.

  7. By 2026

    Edinburgh institute directorships

    By 2026, her Edinburgh career includes service as Director of the Graduate School and Director of the Institute for Perception, Action and Behaviour.

  8. As of October 2026

    Professor at Edinburgh

    In May 2026, her Nature article describes a bee-inspired navigation robot that pinpoints its home using a neural network. As of October 2026, she is Professor of Biorobotics at the University of Edinburgh.

Career

  1. Since 1993University of EdinburghLecturer
  2. 1999–2003University of StirlingLecturer
  3. 1995–1998University of NottinghamLecturer

Education

  1. 1993University of EdinburghPh.D. in Artificial Intelligence
  2. 1988University of SydneyB.Sc. in Psychology

From the biography and OpenAlex affiliations (the years of papers that list the organization), so some years are approximate.

Most-cited works

  1. A model of depth-dependent responses from neural superposition in fly compound eyes2026 · 0 citations
  2. Animal Behaviour, 2000, 60, 545--5582007 · 0 citations
  3. Bee-inspired navigation robot pinpoints its home using a neural network2026 · Nature · 0 citations
  4. Connectome-Constrained Spiking Networks Reproduce Emergent Computations in Larval Olfactory Pathway2026 · 0 citations
  5. From eye anatomy to navigation: a biologically accurate model of bees’ polarisation vision2026 · 0 citations

From OpenAlex, as of 19 October 2026.

  1. Stanford University trained or employed 26 of the 108 AI major-prize winners, more than any other universityIncludes University of Edinburgh. Stanford University trained or employed 26 of the 108 AI major-prize winners, more than any other university. We compare doctorate and employment links for major-prize and best-paper winners.
  2. Google has the highest combined h-index among AI organizationsIncludes University of Edinburgh. Our estimates of combined and median h-index at AI organizations, using current affiliations and OpenAlex records.
  3. More people shaping AI studied at Massachusetts Institute of Technology than at any other institutionIncludes University of Edinburgh. Our estimates of where the people shaping AI studied and where their careers led, from education records in cited biographies.
  4. The company share of AI researchers’ top papers rose from 2% to 32%Includes University of Edinburgh. We estimate where leading AI researchers worked when their most-cited papers appeared. The company share rose from 2% in 1975–1979 to 32% in 2020–2024.

Colleagues

People with dated positions at the same organization in the same years.

Sources and credits

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

  1. Barbara Webb homepages.inf.ed.ac.uk. Checked 18 October 2026.
  2. People – Insect Robotics Group blogs.ed.ac.uk. Checked 18 October 2026.
  3. Cognition in insects pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. Checked 18 October 2026.
  4. People – Insect Robotics Group blogs.ed.ac.uk. Checked 18 October 2026.
  5. Barbara Webb develops a robotic gripper that mimics ants’ jaws informatics.ed.ac.uk. Checked 18 October 2026.
  6. Professor Barbara Webb FRSE rse.org.uk. Checked 18 October 2026.
  7. Barbara Webb – University of Edinburgh Research Explorer research.ed.ac.uk. Checked 18 October 2026.