Ana Paiva has been selected as one of 2022’s “50 women in robotics you need to know about”.

Once a year, in celebration of Ada Lovelace Day (held on the second Tuesday of October), the Women in Robotics network — a global community of women who work in robotics or aspire to do so — puts together a shortlist of inspiring women across the entire robotics industry that everyone should know about. And this year, Professor Paiva has been one of the fifty selectees.

A researcher within the INESC-ID Artificial Intelligence for People and Society Research Area and Full Professor at Instituto Superior Técnico (as well as the Katherine Hampson Bessell Fellow at Radcliffe Institute), Professor Paiva is once again singled out as a role model for women of all ages and career stages aspiring to work in STEM or already building their own path as researchers and innovators.

As the list announcement reiterates, “The role models these 50 women represent are diverse, ranging from emeritus to early career stage. Role models are important. Countess Ada Lovelace, the world’s first computer programmer and an extraordinary mathematician, faced an uphill battle in the days when women were not encouraged to pursue a career in science. Fast forward 200 years and there are still not enough women in science, technology, engineering or math (STEM).” Professor Paiva is one of the visible female role models bringing robotics to life, edging the world of STEM one career closer to equality.