On Friday afternoon, a line of robots journeyed down Speedway accompanied by musicians from UT Mariachi and students from Texas Robotics. Students, faculty and researchers gathered at the heart of campus to celebrate a year of collaboration between robotics and artificial intelligence.
The Robot Parade, Show & Tell & Dance, held last Friday as part of the University’s three-day AI Live event, celebrated UT’s advancements in artificial intelligence and marked the conclusion of UT’s Year of AI. The event brought together cutting-edge technology, creative performances and community engagement. The parade began at Anna Hiss Gymnasium and made its way down Speedway to Gregory Gymnasium Plaza. The crowd enjoyed a choreographed robot dance set to Beyoncé’s “TEXAS HOLD ‘EM” and a robot fashion show. Mathematics senior Caleb Chalmers joined the excitement by driving his robot, ‘Bert,’ through the crowd.
“I love showing it off to people because when I first joined, I thought it was really cool — especially how it drives,” Chalmers said. “(Bert) is super fun to play with and show off, so I love taking it places and letting other people experience that.”
Christina Petlowany, a mechanical engineering Ph.D. student and president of Texas Robotics Graduate Students, was among those presenting her work. Petlowany, who specializes in robotic research, brought a variety of robots to the event, including Boston Dynamics’ robot dog, ‘Spot,’ and her own in-house creations.
“I think the realities of what the media says about robots and AI are often very different from the actual realities,” Petlowany said. “It’s interesting to see the takeaways that people have and to be able to talk to them and understand how media is presenting them versus the work we’re doing.”
While informing the public about her work, Petlowany said events where she can showcase her research also help her refine how to communicate complex topics.
“When you get deep into research, it’s really common to have to decide, ‘How deep into this do I go?’” Petlowany said. “What is the amount of information I need to deliver to make sure that someone understands what’s going on?”
One unexpected but welcome addition to the parade was the musical collaboration between UT Mariachi and the robotics team. Nicolas Siller, an economics junior and member of UT Mariachi, reflected on the experience of playing alongside the robots.
“It was our first time playing for robots,” Siller said. “(I) didn’t know what to expect. We always enjoy playing for different colleges and getting to share our music with different people and the University.”
Throughout the event, attendees had the chance to engage with the robots and ask questions about their functions, uses and development. Petlowany said events like this are important to fostering a broader interest in robotics.
“Hopefully (we can) get more people interested in robotics and reach out to a wider variety of people,” Petlowany said. “We need people doing robotics, and we want them to come from different areas and walks of life.”
