Frank Dellaert's life changed when he visited a friend at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who was working on interesting research projects.
Born and raised in Belgium, Frank had been introduced to computers as a teenager and was fascinated. He went on to pursue a degree in engineering, after which he served in the military as all Belgians were expected to do. When he took up a job at a shipping company in their technology department, he was bored. A visit to the U.S to see a friend inspired him to apply to U.S universities.
While doing his Ph.D., Frank found his passion for robotics and for a career in teaching. He is now on the faculty of the Georgia Institute of Technology, doing some pretty cool research himself, as well as inspiring students.
In this three-part series, Dr. Dellaert shares his journey and how a passion can turn into a career if we are open to and pursue opportunities. He explains what exactly robots do, and what his areas of interest are.