Sebastian Thrun
Encyclopedia
Sebastian Thrun is a Research Professor of Computer Science at Stanford University
and former director of the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (SAIL). He led the development of the robotic vehicle Stanley
which won the 2005 DARPA Grand Challenge
, and which is exhibited in the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History
. His team also developed Junior, which placed second at the DARPA Urban Challenge in 2007. Thrun led the development of the Google self-driving car. Thrun is also known for his work on probabilistic programming techniques in robotics, with applications including robotic mapping
. In recognition of his contributions, and at age 39, Thrun was elected into the National Academy of Engineering
and also into the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina in 2007. In 2011, Thrun received the Max-Planck-Research Award. and the inaugural AAAI Ed Feigenbaum Prize.
Fast Company selected Thrun as the fifth most creative person in business in the world.
in 1988. At the University of Bonn
, he completed a Diplom (master's degree
) in 1993 and a PhD
(summa cum laude) in 1995 in computer science and statistics.
(CMU). In 1998 he became an assistant professor and co-director of the Robot Learning Laboratory at CMU. As a faculty member at CMU, he co-founded the Master's Program in Automated Learning and Discovery, which later would become a Ph.D. program in the broad area of Machine Learning and Scientific Discovery. In 2001 Thrun spent a sabbatical year at Stanford University
. He returned to CMU to an endowed professorship, the Finmeccanica
Associate Professor of Computer Science and Robotics.
Thrun left CMU in July 2003 to become an associate professor at Stanford University and was appointed as the director of SAIL in January 2004. Since 2007, Thrun has been a full professor of computer science and electrical engineering at Stanford. He is also a Google Fellow, and has worked on development of the Google driverless car
system.
and Dieter Fox
developed the world's first robotic tourguide in the Deutsches Museum Bonn (1997). In 1998, the follow-up robot "Minerva" was installed in the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in Washington, DC, where it guided tens of thousands of visitors during a two-week deployment period. Thrun went on to found the CMU/Pitt Nursebot project, which fielded an interactive humanoid robot in a nursing home near Pittsburgh, PA. In 2002, Thrun helped develop mine mapping robots in a project with his colleagues William L. Whittaker
and Scott Thayer, two research professors at Carnegie Mellon University. After his move to Stanford University in 2003, he engaged in the development of the robot Stanley
, which in 2005 won the DARPA Grand Challenge
. His former graduate student Michael Montemerlo, who was co-advised by William L. Whittaker
, led the software development for this robot. In 2007, Thrun's robot "Junior" won second place in the 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge
. Thrun joined Google
as part of a sabbatical, together with several Stanford students. At Google, Thrun co-developed Google Street View
.
Thrun's best known contributions to robotics are on the theoretical end. Thrun contributed to the area of probabilistic robotics, a field that marries statistics
and robotics
. Thrun and his research group made substantial contributions in areas of mobile robot localization, mapping (SLAM
), and control. Probabilistic techniques have since become mainstream in robotics, and are used in numerous commercial applications. In the Fall of 2005, Thrun published a textbook entitled Probabilistic Robotics together with his long-term co-workers Dieter Fox
and Wolfram Burgard
. Since 2007, a Japanese translation of Probabilistic Robotics has been available on the Japanese market.
Thrun is one of the principal investors of the Stanford spin-off VectorMagic
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
and former director of the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (SAIL). He led the development of the robotic vehicle Stanley
Stanley (vehicle)
Stanley is an autonomous vehicle created by Stanford University's Stanford Racing Team in cooperation with the Volkswagen Electronics Research Laboratory...
which won the 2005 DARPA Grand Challenge
DARPA Grand Challenge
The DARPA Grand Challenge is a prize competition for driverless vehicles, funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the most prominent research organization of the United States Department of Defense...
, and which is exhibited in the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History
National Museum of American History
The National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center collects, preserves and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific and military history. Among the items on display are the original Star-Spangled Banner and Archie Bunker's...
. His team also developed Junior, which placed second at the DARPA Urban Challenge in 2007. Thrun led the development of the Google self-driving car. Thrun is also known for his work on probabilistic programming techniques in robotics, with applications including robotic mapping
Robotic mapping
Robotic mapping is related to cartography. The goal for an autonomous robot to be able to construct a map or floor plan and to localize itself in it...
. In recognition of his contributions, and at age 39, Thrun was elected into the National Academy of Engineering
National Academy of Engineering
The National Academy of Engineering is a government-created non-profit institution in the United States, that was founded in 1964 under the same congressional act that led to the founding of the National Academy of Sciences...
and also into the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina in 2007. In 2011, Thrun received the Max-Planck-Research Award. and the inaugural AAAI Ed Feigenbaum Prize.
Fast Company selected Thrun as the fifth most creative person in business in the world.
Education
Thrun received his Vordiplom (associate degree) in computer science, economics, and medicine, from the University of HildesheimUniversity of Hildesheim
The University of Hildesheim was founded in 1978. Its main faculties are educational and social sciences, cultural sciences and aesthetic communications, and information and communication sciences. With around 5000 students currently enrolled, this university is relatively small.Unlike very few...
in 1988. At the University of Bonn
University of Bonn
The University of Bonn is a public research university located in Bonn, Germany. Founded in its present form in 1818, as the linear successor of earlier academic institutions, the University of Bonn is today one of the leading universities in Germany. The University of Bonn offers a large number...
, he completed a Diplom (master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
) in 1993 and a PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
(summa cum laude) in 1995 in computer science and statistics.
Career
In 1995 he joined the Computer Science Department at Carnegie Mellon UniversityCarnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States....
(CMU). In 1998 he became an assistant professor and co-director of the Robot Learning Laboratory at CMU. As a faculty member at CMU, he co-founded the Master's Program in Automated Learning and Discovery, which later would become a Ph.D. program in the broad area of Machine Learning and Scientific Discovery. In 2001 Thrun spent a sabbatical year at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
. He returned to CMU to an endowed professorship, the Finmeccanica
Finmeccanica
Finmeccanica S.p.A. is an Italian conglomerate. Finmeccanica is the second largest industrial group and the largest of the hi-tech industrial groups based in Italy. It works in the fields of defence, aerospace, security, automation, transport and energy...
Associate Professor of Computer Science and Robotics.
Thrun left CMU in July 2003 to become an associate professor at Stanford University and was appointed as the director of SAIL in January 2004. Since 2007, Thrun has been a full professor of computer science and electrical engineering at Stanford. He is also a Google Fellow, and has worked on development of the Google driverless car
Google driverless car
The Google Driverless Car is a project by Google that involves developing technology for driverless cars. The project is currently being led by Google engineer Sebastian Thrun, director of the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory and co-inventor of Google Street View, whose team at Stanford...
system.
Research
Thrun developed a number of autonomous robotic systems that earned him international recognition. In 1994, he started the University of Bonn's Rhino project together with his doctoral thesis advisor Armin B. Cremers. In 1997 Thrun and his colleagues Wolfram BurgardWolfram Burgard
Wolfram Burgard is a German roboticist. He is a full professor at the Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg where he heads the Laboratory for Autonomous Intelligent Systems...
and Dieter Fox
Dieter Fox
Dieter Fox is a German roboticist and a Professor in the Department of Computer Science & Engineering at the University of Washington, Seattle. He is most notable for his contributions to several fields including robotics, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and ubiquitous computing...
developed the world's first robotic tourguide in the Deutsches Museum Bonn (1997). In 1998, the follow-up robot "Minerva" was installed in the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in Washington, DC, where it guided tens of thousands of visitors during a two-week deployment period. Thrun went on to found the CMU/Pitt Nursebot project, which fielded an interactive humanoid robot in a nursing home near Pittsburgh, PA. In 2002, Thrun helped develop mine mapping robots in a project with his colleagues William L. Whittaker
William L. Whittaker
William L. "Red" Whittaker is a roboticist and research professor of robotics at Carnegie Mellon University . Together with the technology lead Christopher Urmson, he led the team "Tartan Racing" to its first place victory in the 2007 DARPA Grand Challenge and brought Carnegie Mellon University the...
and Scott Thayer, two research professors at Carnegie Mellon University. After his move to Stanford University in 2003, he engaged in the development of the robot Stanley
Stanley (vehicle)
Stanley is an autonomous vehicle created by Stanford University's Stanford Racing Team in cooperation with the Volkswagen Electronics Research Laboratory...
, which in 2005 won the DARPA Grand Challenge
DARPA Grand Challenge
The DARPA Grand Challenge is a prize competition for driverless vehicles, funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the most prominent research organization of the United States Department of Defense...
. His former graduate student Michael Montemerlo, who was co-advised by William L. Whittaker
William L. Whittaker
William L. "Red" Whittaker is a roboticist and research professor of robotics at Carnegie Mellon University . Together with the technology lead Christopher Urmson, he led the team "Tartan Racing" to its first place victory in the 2007 DARPA Grand Challenge and brought Carnegie Mellon University the...
, led the software development for this robot. In 2007, Thrun's robot "Junior" won second place in the 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge
DARPA Grand Challenge (2007)
The third driverless car competition of the DARPA Grand Challenge, was commonly known as the DARPA Urban Challenge. It took place on November 3, 2007 at the site of the now-closed George Air Force Base , in Victorville, California , in the West of the United States...
. Thrun joined Google
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
as part of a sabbatical, together with several Stanford students. At Google, Thrun co-developed Google Street View
Google Street View
Google Street View is a technology featured in Google Maps and Google Earth that provides panoramic views from various positions along many streets in the world...
.
Thrun's best known contributions to robotics are on the theoretical end. Thrun contributed to the area of probabilistic robotics, a field that marries statistics
Statistics
Statistics is the study of the collection, organization, analysis, and interpretation of data. It deals with all aspects of this, including the planning of data collection in terms of the design of surveys and experiments....
and robotics
Robotics
Robotics is the branch of technology that deals with the design, construction, operation, structural disposition, manufacture and application of robots...
. Thrun and his research group made substantial contributions in areas of mobile robot localization, mapping (SLAM
Simultaneous localization and mapping
Simultaneous localization and mapping is a technique used by robots and autonomous vehicles to build up a map within an unknown environment , or to update a map within a known environment , while at the same time keeping track of their current location.- Operational definition :Maps are used...
), and control. Probabilistic techniques have since become mainstream in robotics, and are used in numerous commercial applications. In the Fall of 2005, Thrun published a textbook entitled Probabilistic Robotics together with his long-term co-workers Dieter Fox
Dieter Fox
Dieter Fox is a German roboticist and a Professor in the Department of Computer Science & Engineering at the University of Washington, Seattle. He is most notable for his contributions to several fields including robotics, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and ubiquitous computing...
and Wolfram Burgard
Wolfram Burgard
Wolfram Burgard is a German roboticist. He is a full professor at the Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg where he heads the Laboratory for Autonomous Intelligent Systems...
. Since 2007, a Japanese translation of Probabilistic Robotics has been available on the Japanese market.
Thrun is one of the principal investors of the Stanford spin-off VectorMagic
External links
- Sebastian Thrun's Stanford home page.
- Wired Magazine article on the DARPA Grand Challenge.
- Sebastian Thrun: An Exemplary Immigrant.
- Popular Mechanics article on the DARPA Grand Challenge.
- Popular Science article on the DARPA Grand Challenge.
- Scientific American article on the DARPA Grand Challenge.
- Popular Science Brilliant Ten in 2005.
- Forbes's Egang 2006.
- Sebastian Thrun speaks with Christian Grant on Executive Talks.