Founded in 2025, the Research Laboratory for Advanced Social Robotics represents the confluence of three antecedent institutions: the Center for Advanced Media Research Amsterdam (CAMeRA, 2007-2012), Services of Electro-Mechanical Care Agencies (SELEMCA, 2011-2015), and the Social Robotics Pop-up Lab (ROBOpop Foundation, 2015-2020). Each of these entities contributed distinct strands to the laboratory’s intellectual mark-up: CAMeRA’s investigations centred upon emergent media technologies; SELEMCA pioneered the development of Caredroids, notably propelling the Alice R50 into public consciousness; and ROBOpop served as a lively conduit for scientific outreach and citizen science in social robotics.

The present laboratory, EARNEST, not only inherits these diverse legacies but also advances into the frontiers of foundational science, probing such phenomena as the interplay between affective and cognitive processes, the observer effect, and the application of quantum probability to decision making. Our methodological commitment is to instantiate theoretical constructs within robotic platforms, operating under the principle that computational realisability is a necessary – though not sufficient – touchstone for theoretical coherence and logical verification. Thereafter, these theories embodied in a robot are subjected to rigorous empirical tests, both in controlled laboratory settings and in situ field deployments, where the inevitable collision with practical realities serves as the ultimate arbiter of theoretical validity.

On the applied front, our research is conducted in close collaboration with end-users and other stakeholders (e.g., professional caretakers, industrial partners), exploring the dynamics of human-robot interaction across domains such as healthcare, education (particularly in tutoring contexts), and daily self-management tasks. Our EARNEST design aspires to deliver interactions that are not only personalised and culturally attuned but also safeguarded by robust data security (e.g., blockchain), thereby fostering the emergence of robots as universal interfaces in the IoT capable of serving as trustworthy confidants and advisors – free from the distortions of generative hallucinations.

Vision:

Envision a society wherein each individual possesses a profound comprehension of the capabilities and constraints inherent in robotics and artificial intelligence, particularly within the social sphere. Such understanding should serve to enhance the benevolent facets of these technologies while mitigating their potential misuse, thereby ensuring they contribute to a life of significance for all, rather than becoming instruments of exploitation or peril. Through research and design, we cultivate intellectual leadership that informs both present and prospective endeavours concerning robotics and AI. This guidance aims to inspire and galvanise individuals towards the development and implementation of social robots, which prove beneficial in areas where human abilities may be insufficient – be that physically or intellectually.

 

 

Mission:

The principal aim of our endeavours at the Research Laboratory for Advanced Social Robotics is to cultivate independent thought and to demystify the nature of robots and artificial intelligence as technologies comprehensible from foundational principles. We seek to elucidate how human perceptions, those of engineers and scientists included, often ascribe attributes to these tools (i.e., consciousness, intelligence, sentience, understanding) that they do not intrinsically possess.

Our laboratory is devoted to fundamental research and theory development in areas such as probability theory, ‘true’ randomness, information entropy, and epistemics. This research underpins the design of robotic and AI systems capable of navigating complex scenarios and making informed decisions that surpass human capabilities, all while ensuring safety and security, with humans retaining ultimate decision-making authority. To this end, we develop sophisticated algorithms (e.g., quantum circuits), invent new statistics (e.g., for the study of outliers), and conduct empirical investigations into diverse topics, including social robots for problem solving and decision making, robots that support mental and physical health, those that serve educational purposes, and those that provide assistance within the home.

Our foremost objective is to research and design systems that simulate human-like (though not human-identical) social behaviours, thereby supporting facets of life where individuals face challenges and where human assistance is either unavailable or insufficient to meet the needs at hand.

 

Location:V611, 6/F, JCIT