PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Jonathan Kelly

Jonathan Kelly is a roboticist at the University of Toronto whose lab works on how machines sense, plan, manipulate and learn. After working as a software engineer at the Canadian Space Agency and starting his research career at the University of Alberta, he completed a Ph.D. at the University of Southern California in 2011 and joined the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies in 2013. In 2017, he led a collaboration to make electric wheelchairs self-driving; in 2019, he taught the Coursera Self-Driving Cars Specialization with Steven Waslander and was named Canada Research Chair in Collaborative Robotics, a chair renewed in 2024. A paper he coauthored with Phone Thiha Kyaw and Matthew Giamou won the Best Paper Award at MFI 2026 in September 2026. Today, he is a professor who leads the STARS Laboratory and is a faculty affiliate of the Vector Institute.

Timeline

  1. By 2011

    A Ph.D. at USC

    Before graduate school, he works as a software engineer in the Space Technologies division of the Canadian Space Agency. He earns an M.Sc. under Hong Zhang, who introduces him to robotics, and starts research in machine learning with Russ Greiner at the University of Alberta. In 2011, he completes a Ph.D. in computer science at the University of Southern California under Gaurav Sukhatme.

  2. 2013

    Joining UTIAS in Toronto

    After a postdoctoral appointment at MIT's CSAIL, working with Nick Roy, he joins the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies in 2013. His goal is to build autonomous robots for tasks ranging from exploring the surface of Mars to helping with eldercare.

  3. 2017

    Self-driving wheelchairs

    In 2017, as an assistant professor at UTIAS, he leads a new academic-industry collaboration that harnesses improved sensors and artificial intelligence to make electric wheelchairs self-driving. The team's low-cost system lets electric wheelchairs become partly or fully autonomous.

  4. January 2019

    Self-driving cars on Coursera

    In January 2019, Coursera launches the University of Toronto's four-part Self-Driving Cars Specialization, taught by him and Professor Steven Waslander. The courses aim to give learners the knowledge and engineering needed to make safe autonomous vehicles a reality.

  5. June 2019

    Canada Research Chair

    In June 2019, he is named the Canada Research Chair (Tier II) in Collaborative Robotics. One focus of his research is warehouse cobots, collaborative robots intended to work side by side with people in logistics, packaging and assembly.

  6. 2024

    A renewed chair and editor award

    In 2024, his Canada Research Chair (Tier II) in Collaborative Robotics is renewed for a second five-year term. He also receives the IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine Outstanding Associate Editor Award for 2024, presented at ICRA 2024 in Yokohama, Japan.

  7. September 2026

    Best paper at MFI 2026

    In September 2026, a paper he coauthors with Phone Thiha Kyaw and Matthew Giamou, "Lost in Time? Continuous Symmetry and Identifiability in Aided Inertial Navigation with Unknown Measurement Delays," wins the Best Paper Award at the IEEE International Conference on Multisensor Fusion and Integration (MFI 2026) in Pilsen, Czech Republic.

  8. As of October 2026

    Professor and STARS Lab director

    He is a professor at the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies, where he leads the Space & Terrestrial Autonomous Robotic Systems (STARS) Laboratory and holds the Canada Research Chair in Collaborative Robotics. His group researches perception, planning and learning, mainly for robotic manipulation. He is a Faculty Affiliate at the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence and the Schwartz Reisman Institute for Technology and Society, and serves as General Chair of the Canadian Conference on AI, Robots & Vision (AI/CRV) 2027 in Toronto.

Career

  1. Since 2017University of TorontoAssistant professor
  2. NowVector InstituteFaculty Affiliate
  3. Canadian Space AgencySoftware engineer
  4. University of AlbertaResearcher
  5. MIT CSAILPostdoctoral researcher

Education

  1. 2011University of Southern CaliforniaPh.D. in computer science

From the biography.

  1. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology trained or employed 44 of the 187 AI major-prize winners, more than any other universityIncludes Jonathan Kelly. 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.
  2. The median h-index is 48 at universities and 14 at frontier AI labsIncludes University of Toronto. The median h-index is 48 at universities and 14 at frontier AI labs. We compare publishing careers, recent citations, dual appointments and job moves across 2,420 university researchers and 308 frontier-lab researchers.
  3. Of 943 people shaping AI who worked at Google, 446 work there nowIncludes Vector Institute. Our estimates of where the 943 people shaping AI who worked at Google and Google DeepMind work now: 446 at Google and 452 across 278 other organizations.
  4. 84% of people shaping AI with recorded undergraduate and doctoral schools changed institutions for their doctorateIncludes University of Toronto. 84% of people shaping AI with recorded undergraduate and doctoral schools changed institutions for their doctorate. Across 2,116 people with both an undergraduate degree and a doctorate recorded, we trace which undergraduate schools feed which doctoral programs, how often students stay at the same school, and how paths differ by birth-country region.

Colleagues

People named in this biography, and people with dated positions at the same organization in the same years.

Sources and credits

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

  1. Jonathan Kelly - Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence vectorinstitute.ai. Checked 21 October 2026.
  2. About Me | Jonathan Kelly jonathankelly.info. Checked 21 October 2026.
  3. Jonathan Kelly - FITC fitc.ca. Checked 21 October 2026.
  4. Self-driving wheelchairs: U of T researchers develop a low-cost robotic retrofit | University of Toronto utoronto.ca. Checked 21 October 2026.
  5. University of Toronto and Coursera course on autonomous vehicles | Autocar Professional autocarpro.in. Checked 21 October 2026.
  6. Jonathan Kelly: New Canada Research Chair in collaborative robotics - University of Toronto Robotics Institute robotics.utoronto.ca. Checked 21 October 2026.
  7. Nine U of T Engineering researchers supported by Canada Research Chairs program - U of T Engineering News news.engineering.utoronto.ca. Checked 21 October 2026.
  8. Renewed Canada Research Chair for Prof. Kelly | STARS Lab starslab.ca. Checked 21 October 2026.
  9. Prof. Kelly receives IEEE RAM Outstanding AE Award | STARS Lab starslab.ca. Checked 21 October 2026.
  10. Best Paper Award at MFI 2026 in Pilsen! | STARS Lab starslab.ca. Checked 21 October 2026.
  11. Home | Jonathan Kelly jonathankelly.info. Checked 21 October 2026.