Panelists: Zara Burzo, Raphael Fournier, additional panelists TBD
Moderator: Prof. Rada Mihalcea
Organizer: Michigan AI Lab, in collaboration with the Ann Arbor District Library
When: September 11, 2026, 6:30pm – 7:30pm
Where: AADL Ann Arbor downtown, 4th Floor Meeting Room (343 S 5th Ave, Ann Arbor, MI 48104)

Robots are among the most challenging automated systems to build because they must operate in the complex and unpredictable physical world. Unlike software-only AI tools, robots require mechanical design, component fabrication, electrical systems, sensing, control, safety, and programming to work together as a single integrated system. A robot that can navigate a room, pick up an object, or respond to a person depends not only on algorithms, but also on sensors, motors, materials, control systems, and careful engineering tradeoffs.

What does it actually take to build a robot from scratch? How do designers decide what components it should have, how it should move, and what kind of intelligence it needs? And when a robot fails, how do engineers determine whether the problem lies in its hardware, software, or overall design? Join us for a conversation with Ann Arbor Public School students about how robots are designed, built, and tested, and why making them work reliably in the real world remains such a difficult challenge.