We are delighted to welcome Kieran Woodward to our Somabotics team.  Kieran told us:

“My research has always explored the deployment of AI and how it can be used to solve real-world problems, so it’s exciting to apply this to Somabotics. My doctoral research explored “Tangible Fidgeting Interfaces for Mental Wellbeing Recognition using Deep Learning applied to Physiological Sensor Data.” This work allowed me to co-design and develop physical interfaces that could infer mental wellbeing states from physiological data using novel deep learning classification approaches. I focused on creating custom-built edge computing devices that enabled personalised monitoring of wellbeing from limited data, with the aim of helping people experiencing mental wellbeing challenges through on-device classification and interactions.”

“Since completing my PhD, I’ve been expanding my research in several directions. As a Research Associate and later Senior Research Fellow in tinyML at Nottingham Trent University, I’ve contributed to projects including the 5G Connected Forest initiative. Working on this DCMS-funded project, I developed a mobile interactive experience “Tag in the park” that combined AI, IoT technologies, and gamification to enhance visitor engagement in real-world environments, and was later deployed at a local mental health hospital to encourage hospital service users to be more physically active. Throughout my career, I’ve valued collaboration across disciplines, working with psychologists, cultural heritage experts, and healthcare professionals and seeing these technologies deployed and making a positive impact has been particularly rewarding.”

“Most recently, my work has focused on developing novel small AI models for deployment in resource-constrained environments. I’ve been investigating techniques such as knowledge distillation, pruning, and quantisation to create efficient, deployable AI models. I’ve been particularly interested in optimising neural networks for edge devices and implementing multi-modal approaches that incorporate contextual information to enhance on-device performance.”

“As part of the Somabotics programme, I’ll be focusing on developing novel approaches for embodied AI. I’m particularly excited about working with artists to create innovative robotic experiences by developing new AI methods and applying my experience in interactive AI systems. By combining technical expertise in AI and interactive systems with experience in multidisciplinary research, I hope to contribute to the development of new AI approaches that transform how we interact with technology.”