Anca Dragan

Anca Dragan is a Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences at the University of California, Berkeley. Her research focuses on human-robot interaction, including predicting human behavior, autonomous systems coordination (e.g., self-driving cars, home robots), and enabling robots to infer human intentions without predefined instructions. She emphasizes safety and communication to prevent conflicts between humans and machines.

Dragan earned her computer science degree at Jacobs University Bremen (2006–2009) and completed her PhD at Carnegie Mellon University. At 27, she became a professor at Berkeley, where she now advocates for diversity in STEM, particularly for women. She collaborates with schools to inspire students in AI, algorithms, and mathematics, emphasizing the importance of varied perspectives in technological development.

Though her specific awards are not detailed, she is described as a multiple award-winning scientist. Her work aims to create robots as helpful tools rather than isolated systems, stressing the need for inclusive developer representation across gender, race, and background.