PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Sami Haddadin

Sami Haddadin is a robotics researcher whose work connects artificial intelligence with safe human–robot interaction and tactile skill learning. He earned degrees in electrical engineering and computer science at the Technical University of Munich, completed a robotics doctorate at RWTH Aachen, and led the DLR’s Human-Robot Interaction group while lecturing in robotics. At the University of Hannover, he became a control-engineering professor in 2014, co-founded FRANKA EMIKA, invented Panda, and shared the 2017 German Future Prize with Simon Haddadin and Sven Parusel. He became founding director of TUM’s robotics and machine-intelligence institute in 2018, led it for almost seven years, received the 2019 Leibniz Prize, and became an IEEE Fellow in 2024; in 2025, he coauthored a teleoperation framework for tactile-skill learning. As of October 2026, he is Vice President of Research and Professor of Robotics at MBZUAI.

Timeline

  1. 2005–2011

    Engineering and robotics studies

    At the Technical University of Munich, he earns an electrical-engineering degree in 2005 and an M.Sc. in computer science in 2009. In 2011, he completes a doctorate at RWTH Aachen on humanoid robots.

  2. 2009–2011

    Leading DLR’s interaction group

    Since 2009, he lectures advanced robotics at TUM. In 2011, he heads the German Aerospace Center’s Human-Robot Interaction group and researches physical interaction, safety, control, and learning.

  3. 2014–2017

    Professor and Franka Emika co-founder

    In 2014, he becomes professor of control engineering at the University of Hannover. By 2017, he is a co-founder of FRANKA EMIKA and the inventor of Panda, a sensitive robot arm. He, Simon Haddadin, and Sven Parusel win the German Future Prize in 2017 for their intuitive robot assistant.

  4. 2018–2025

    Founding TUM’s robotics institute

    In April 2018, he becomes founding director of TUM’s Munich School of Robotics and Machine Intelligence. By April 2025, he completes almost seven years as its director.

  5. 2019

    A Leibniz Prize for robotics

    The DFG awards him the 2019 Leibniz Prize for research on safe physical human–robot interaction. His work applies artificial intelligence and machine learning to collision-free route planning and artificial reflex systems.

  6. 2024

    An IEEE Fellowship

    IEEE elevates him to Fellow grade in 2024 for contributions to robot safety, tactile robots, and interaction control.

  7. 2025

    Teaching robots tactile skills

    In 2025, he coauthors a teleoperation framework for online learning and adaptation of tactile skills. The method supports robot motion and force learning from human demonstrations within a few iterations.

  8. As of October 2026

    Vice President at MBZUAI

    As of October 2026, he is Vice President of Research and Professor of Robotics at MBZUAI.

Sources and credits

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  1. Next Generation Robots: From Robotic Co-Workers and Service Assistants to Human-Inspired Robot Design cs.jhu.edu. Checked 15 October 2026.
  2. Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prizes 2019 dfg.de. Checked 15 October 2026.
  3. Highly sensitive robots, complex hand prostheses, new quality of clinical images - three candidates nominated for the Deutscher Zukunftspreis award 2017 dpma.de. Checked 15 October 2026.
  4. Team 2 – 2017 | Deutscher Zukunftspreis deutscher-zukunftspreis.de. Checked 15 October 2026.
  5. Künstliche Intelligenz und Robotik unter einem Dach tum.de. Checked 15 October 2026.
  6. TUM Robotics: MIRMI with new leadership mirmi.tum.de. Checked 15 October 2026.
  7. 2024 IEEE RAS Fellow Class Announced ieee-ras.org. Checked 15 October 2026.
  8. Online Transfer and Adaptation of Tactile Skill: A Teleoperation Framework proceedings.mlr.press. Checked 15 October 2026.
  9. The Global AI Research & Knowledge Network ai-nexus.mbzuai.ac.ae. Checked 15 October 2026.