image: Lydia Kavraki and students.
Credit: Rice University
HOUSTON – (Feb. 12, 2025) – Rice University computer scientist Lydia Kavraki has been elected to the National Academy of Engineering (NAE), one of the highest professional honors accorded to an engineer, for her work on “developing randomized motion-planning algorithms for robotics and robotics-inspired methods in biomedicine.”
Kavraki is Rice’s Kenneth and Audrey Kennedy Professor of Computing, and a professor of computer science, electrical and computer engineering, mechanical engineering, and bioengineering. She also serves as director of the Ken Kennedy Institute, whose mission is to solve global challenges by fostering collaborative research and innovation in artificial intelligence (AI) and computing.
Kavraki’s election to the NAE acknowledges the transformative impact of her work in robotics, where her development of sampling-based, motion-planning algorithms has revolutionized the field by reducing planning times from minutes to a small fraction of a second. This work underlies Kavraki’s vision for a world where “robots are able to work safely and seamlessly alongside humans,” opening new frontiers in human-robot collaboration, from industrial automation to space exploration and robot-assisted surgery.
“It is an incredible honor to join this community, and this recognition is a testament to the dedication of my students and collaborators who have worked by my side to push the boundaries of robotics and computational biomedicine,” Kavraki said. “I look forward to continuing our work to develop intelligent systems that benefit society.”
Kavraki’s work has had a profound impact on academic research and industry. The Open Motion Planning Library, developed and maintained by her lab since 2008, is an essential tool widely integrated into software systems used in industrial, space and medical applications. Her contributions to NASA’s Robonaut2 and her research on robots for astronaut assistance underscore her influence on the future of physical AI. In biomedicine, her computational tools provide state-of-the-art support for clinicians, including at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, where Kavraki’s APE-Gen tool has helped guide personalized immunotherapy.
“Lydia Kavraki’s election to the National Academy of Engineering is a well-deserved recognition of her groundbreaking contributions to robotics, biomedicine and artificial intelligence,” said Rice President Reginald DesRoches. “Her diligent and innovative work in this area has not only advanced the field but has also inspired generations of engineers and researchers. We at Rice University are immensely proud of Lydia’s achievements and the impact she continues to have on science and society.”
Beyond her research, Kavraki is also a dedicated mentor and leader. Moreover, her commitment to AI innovation as an ethics-informed practice is underscored in recent projects such as tackling the risks of bias in data and machine learning models for immunotherapy and privacy concerns associated with robots operating in human environments.
“I am deeply grateful for the countless opportunities I have been afforded at Rice - particularly the privilege of collaborating with extraordinary colleagues and students who have continually enriched and inspired my work,” Kavraki said. “I share this distinction with my students, whose dedication and creativity have been pivotal in my journey, and with my family who has supported me every step of the way. I also extend my heartfelt thanks to the colleagues who supported my nomination. I look forward to working with fellow NAE members, combining our collective expertise to uplift and improve our world.”
Kavraki, a member of the National Academy of Medicine and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, is the recipient of numerous awards and distinctions, including recognition as a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence and the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering. She has authored over 400 research publications and a robotics textbook. During her tenure at Rice, she has mentored over 30 PhD students and 20 postdocs, while she has supervised more than 100 undergraduates on research projects.
“Lydia’s election to the National Academy of Engineering is a testament to her groundbreaking contributions to robotics, AI and biomedical computing,” said Luay Nakhleh, the William and Stephanie Sick Dean of the George R. Brown School of Engineering and Computing. “She has shaped the field and had a profound impact on society through her cutting-edge research, outstanding mentoring and extensive service to the academic community at large. Lydia operates at a level of excellence we all aspire to, and we are incredibly proud that she is a part of the Rice Engineering and Computing community.”
Kavraki is among 128 new U.S. members and 22 international members elected to the NAE’s 2025 class. The newly elected members will be formally inducted during the NAE’s annual meeting on Oct. 5, 2025.
The list of all newly elected members can be viewed on the organization website.
Kavraki joins 15 Rice faculty who are members of the academy ¾ current faculty members Pedro Alvarez, Richard Baraniuk, DesRoches, Abbas Firoozabadi, Gene Frantz, Naomi Halas, Antonios Mikos, Ramamoorthy Ramesh, Rebecca Richards-Kortum, Pol Spanos, Richard Tapia, Jim Tour and Moshe Vardi — along with professors emeritus George Hirasaki and Ronald Nordgren.
-30-
This news release can be found online at news.rice.edu.
Follow Rice News and Media Relations via Twitter @RiceUNews.
About Rice:
Located on a 300-acre forested campus in Houston, Texas, Rice University is consistently ranked among the nation’s top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has highly respected schools of architecture, business, continuing studies, engineering and computing, humanities, music, natural sciences and social sciences and is home to the Baker Institute for Public Policy. Internationally, the university maintains the Rice Global Paris Center, a hub for innovative collaboration, research and inspired teaching located in the heart of Paris. With 4,776 undergraduates and 4,104 graduate students, Rice’s undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio is just under 6-to-1. Its residential college system builds close-knit communities and lifelong friendships, just one reason why Rice is ranked No. 1 for lots of race/class interaction and No. 7 for best-run colleges by the Princeton Review. Rice is also rated as a best value among private universities by the Wall Street Journal and is included on Forbes’ exclusive list of “New Ivies.”
If you do not wish to receive news releases from Rice University, reply to this email and write “unsubscribe” in the subject line. Office of News and Media Relations – MS 300, Rice University, 6100 Main St., Houston, TX 77005.