I am Nathan Dennler, a full-stack roboticist. I am a postdoctoral researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology advised by Andreea Bobu. My research enables users to intuitively specify optimization problems that, when solved, result in robots that align with that user’s specific preferences. I ground the algorithms I develop in manipulation, rehabilitation, and socially assistive applications where real robots interact with real users.

I address this problem through three pillars: (1) learning human-aligned robot representations from observed user behaviors, (2) identifying constraints through interaction to reduce search complexity, and (3) creating human-in-the-loop optimization algorithms that quickly find a user’s preferred robot behaviors in noisy settings. I also enjoy building open-source tools (e.g., PyLips and The MUFaSAA Dataset) to support robotics researchers and hobbyists. For a complete listing of my work, head over to my Research page.

I am on the academic job market! Let me know if you hear of any opportunities!

Previously, I developed AI systems at Uber that predicted user behaviors to optimize marketplace welfare across the globe. I received my PhD from the University of Southern California, where I was co-advised by Stefanos Nikolaidis and Maja Matarić. I also received a B.S. in Computer Science and a B.Eng. in Robotics Engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute. In my spare time, you can find me find me figure skating at Johnson Athletic Center, designing and sewing garments in my living room, running along the Charles, or whacking/waacking/punking in any of the aforementioned spaces. If you want to see me do any of these things (and more!), check out my Miscellany page.

News:

• Jul 2026: Organized the RSS Pioneers Workshop with Lukas Schmid at RSS!
• Jun 2026: Organized Community Building Day with Andrea Sipos at ICRA!
• Mar 2026: I gave a talk on Robot Faces at the Vizij Workshop at HRI 2026!
• Mar 2026: I gave a talk at the Cornell Robotics Seminar!
• Sept 2025: I attended the UC Berkeley NextProf Nexus program.
• May 2025: I was awarded the Order of the Laurel and the Palm at USC for leadership and service that shaped the campus and the world at large.

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Selected Publications

Journal Papers

Conference Papers