Postdoctoral Positions at the NSF Center for Human and Robot Co-Adaptation

We are seeking to hire several postdoctoral researchers at The University of Texas at Austin to work with the newly established NSF Center for Human and Robot Co-Adaptation.

Supported by a five-year, $30 million NSF Science and Technology Center award, the Center brings together 39 researchers from six universities and multiple industry partners. Its goal is to establish a new science of human-robot co-adaptation: understanding how people and robots learn from one another and adjust their behavior over extended periods in everyday environments. The Center is led by The University of Texas at Austin in partnership with Indiana University Bloomington, MIT, Tufts University, the University of Utah, and Yale University. Industry collaborators include Amazon, Apptronik, Diligent Robotics, Google DeepMind, Hello Robot, MassRobotics, NVIDIA, and Robust AI.

Research will combine robotics, artificial intelligence, human-robot interaction, cognitive science, human factors, and social science. The Center’s work will be grounded in long-term studies and robot deployments through the Human Environment with Robots (HERO) Facility Network, which includes homes, dormitories, cafés, a public museum, a rehabilitation hospital, elder-care facilities, and assisted-living residences.

The positions will be based at The University of Texas at Austin. The primary faculty mentor for each position will be identified together with the candidate, based on their expertise and proposed research direction. In every case, postdoctoral researchers will work closely with Joydeep Biswas, the Center’s director, and the leadership team: Daniel Brown (Utah), Dylan Hadfield-Menell (MIT), Selma Šabanović (Indiana), Brian Scassellati (Yale), Matthias Scheutz (Tufts), and Chen Yu (UT Austin).

The UT Austin team spans robotics, AI, cognitive science, human-centered computing, and social science: Samuel Baker, Kaya de Barbaro, Nicholas Duran, Maria Esteva, Kenneth Fleischmann, Justin Hart, Elliott Hauser, Brad Knox, Roberto Martín-Martín, Luis Sentis, Keri Stephens, Peter Stone, Chen Yu, and Yuke Zhu.

Postdoctoral researchers will also have opportunities to collaborate with faculty and students at all six partner institutions. Researchers will further have the opportunity to work with the Center’s industry partners, to draw on high-performance computing resources at the Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC), and to lead real-world long-term robot deployments in the HERO Facility Network.

Prospective candidates should have, by the start of the position, a PhD in computer science, robotics, engineering, cognitive science, social science, or a related field, together with an established research track record demonstrated through impactful publications.

Relevant research areas include:

  • Robot learning, reinforcement learning, and learning from human interaction
  • Embodied AI, foundation models, and vision-language-action models
  • Human-robot interaction and human-centered robotics
  • Assistive robotics, mobile manipulation, and service robots
  • Long-term autonomy and continual adaptation
  • Modeling human needs, preferences, values, and behavior
  • Cognitive and social dimensions of human-robot co-adaptation
  • Safe, secure, trustworthy, and privacy-preserving robotics
  • Simulation, digital twins, and scalable evaluation of embodied systems
  • Community-engaged research and longitudinal studies in everyday environments

Candidates whose research crosses disciplinary boundaries are particularly encouraged to apply. Experience in robotics, AI and machine learning, human-robot interaction, or relevant empirical human-centered research methods is expected, as appropriate to the proposed area of work.

Expected start date: As soon as possible

Duration: One-year appointments, with the option to renew for additional years based on performance and availability of funding

Review timeline: Applications will be reviewed until the positions are filled. Full consideration will be given to applications received by September 30, 2026.

Application instructions

Prospective applicants should apply by email to joydeepb@cs.utexas.edu with the subject “HRC Postdoc Application” and include the following:

  • A two-page PDF statement describing previous research, its impact on the field, and areas of interest for future research. Applicants should also describe how their interests connect to human-robot co-adaptation and the Center’s interdisciplinary mission.
  • An up-to-date CV including academic preparation, relevant research or industry experience, publications, a personal website, significant awards, teaching experience, and service record.
  • A list of at least three references, including the PhD supervisor. Letters will be requested from the references after the initial review.

Learn more through the UT Austin announcement and the NSF announcement.