Sebastian Risi

Sebastian Risi is a Professor at the IT University of Copenhagen, where he directs the Creative AI Lab and co-directs the Robotics, Evolution and Art Lab (REAL). His work bridges computational evolution, deep learning, and collective intelligence for applications in robotics, art, and video game design.

His research focuses on self-organizing AI systems that grow or assemble through local interactions, inspired by biological development. Key areas include neuroevolution, neural cellular automata, and generative modeling, with applications in adaptive robotics, game content creation, and damage-resilient AI.

Recent publications highlight trends in self-assembling neural architectures (NDPs) and 3D functional machine generation (Minecraft experiments). Awards include ERC Consolidator Grant (2022), Best Paper at FDG’21, and Google Faculty Award (2019).

• Scientific Awards: ERC Consolidator Grant (GROW-AI), Best Paper FDG’21, Runner-Up IEEE Games’20, GECCO 2017 Competition Winner, Sapere Aude Grant, Amazon/Google Faculty Awards

He advises on projects like GROW-AI (EU-funded), AI-TESTER (game testing), and C2SIM (military systems). Media coverage includes Science, Wired, and Popular Science.