The IEEE Robotics and Automation Society (RAS) is thrilled to invite you to its upcoming flagship conference, the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), which will be held in Vienna, Austria, from 1 – 5 June 2026.
IEEE ICRA 2026 includes plenary and keynote sessions, contributed paper sessions, workshops and tutorial sessions, forums, expos and exhibitions from our corporate partners, robot competitions, and numerous social events.
TEAB&SAC Dinner
Sunday, 31 May
5:00 – 8:00pm
Wiener Rathauskeller
Rathausplatz 1, 1010 Vienna
Event (and waiting list) are fully booked!
We warmly welcome students and postdoctoral researchers to attend the TAB (Technical Activities Board) & EAB (Educational Activities Board) & SAC (Student Activities Committee) Dinner. This gathering is designed to strengthen connections among current and former Technical Committees (TCs) and early-career researchers.
Join us to learn more about TCs and SAC, as well as the roles of TAB and EAB, and to explore ways to become actively involved in the Robotics and Automation Society.
Applicants will be contacted by the RAS Office directly.
TC Meet-up
Monday, 1 June
8:00pm (Please arrive before 8:30)
Location: Prater Alm (Prater 71B, 1020 Wien, Austria – 5 mins walking from VIECON)
The IEEE Robotics & Automation Society’s Technical Committees for TCs on Cognitive Robotics, Rehabilitation and Assistive Robotics, and Human-Robot Interaction and Coordination are hosting a joint happy hour. This is a great opportunity to network, share ideas, and connect with members across our communities!
RSVP (limited space available)
Tech Talk Stage
Join us on the Tech Talk Stage in the Hall C7 – next to the Exhibition Hall to bridge the gap between industry and academia with our rapid-fire Tech Talks. In just 12 minutes, companies dive into today’s technical challenges and the solutions they’ve built. These sessions serve as the perfect industry complement to academic posters and presentations.
Whether you are seeking your next career move or are curious about the technology shaping our world, come see the state of the art in action. Afterward, you can find every speaker at their respective booths on the exhibition floor, making them easily accessible for further discussion and networking.
Innovation Stage
The Industrial Activities Board (IAB) is introducing the Innovation Stage as a dedicated space for budding robotics entrepreneurs and those interested in ecosystem building and partnerships. They will showcase short talks from the Startup exhibitors, as well as seasoned experts.
If you are facing start up challenges, such as preparing to manufacture for the first time or finding the right robotics companies to partner with. Then this is a place to be.
Join us in Hall C6 (next to the Exhibition Hall) to gain actionable advice on avoiding common pitfalls and find inspiration in the lived experiences of those who have successfully navigated the struggles of entrepreneurship.
2026 IEEE RAS Conference Organizers Workshop
Tuesday, 2 June
10:00 – 11:00am
Schubert 1 at the VIECON
Anyone who is involved in organizing an IEEE-RAS conference, large or small, or is thinking about organizing a conference is encouraged to attend. Get answers to your questions about the organization, requirements, logistics and conference finance, both large and small. Speak with the experts for advice on how to make sure your conference is executed flawlessly!
Conference Organizers Workshop is FREE!
Space is limited, so we encourage you to register as soon as your availability is confirmed.
Please register for this FREE workshop by 26 May, 2026 by submitting the form
To register by email or ask questions, please contact: Lukrecija Lelong at [email protected]
WiE Lunch
Tuesday, 2 June
12:30-2:00pm
VIECON: Restaurant D – Riesenrad Restaurant
The RAS-WiE Lunch provides a vibrant platform to celebrate and empower women in robotics and automation. We will have presentations from female authors, sharing their experience as women researchers in robotics, followed by a moderated discussion promoting interaction between speakers and the audience.
Attendees will also have the opportunity to network. Luncheon will be served throughout the event, fostering an informal and welcoming atmosphere for dialogue and connection. This event is a unique opportunity to reflect on the impact of women in robotics, celebrate their contributions, and inspire future leaders.
The goal for this event is to be more than a lunch with women. All are encouraged to participate and enjoy the discussion.
There is NO CHARGE for this event, but space is limited. Register in advance!
Young Professionals Lunch
Tuesday, 2 June
12:30-2:00pm
VIECON: Restaurant Melange
Join us for a session on reproducibility in robotics, featuring two leading researchers tackling one of the field’s most pressing challenges: ensuring that systems work reliably beyond a single setup. Prof. Enric Cervera Mateu will follow with “It Works on My Machine—And Yours: Engineering Reproducibility in Robotics,” focusing on practical strategies, tools, and best practices to ensure that robotic systems can be reliably reproduced by others. Dr. Tobias Fischer will present “Beyond Containers: Cross-Platform Reproducibility for Robotics in the ML Era,” exploring how modern machine learning systems in robotics can be made robust and reproducible across different platforms and environments.
This session will provide valuable insights into building more open, reliable, and transferable robotics systems!
There is NO CHARGE for this event, but space is limited. Register in advance!
Advancing Sustainability in Robotics: From Green Design to Real-World Impact
Tuesday, 2 June
3:00 – 4:30pm
Hall A1 (Plenary)
This panel offers a platform to explore current trends for sustainability in robotics, bringing together academic research and applications. It will highlight ongoing initiatives and strategies aimed at advancing more sustainable practices, including circular design principles, energy optimization, responsible resource use and transparent lifecycle assessment methods. The discussion will also look ahead to future perspectives, identifying emerging trends, open challenges, and opportunities for innovation toward measurable and comparable sustainability performance in robotics.
RAS TOWN HALL
Tuesday, 2 June
6:15pm
Hall A3 at the VIECON
Calling all Robotics and Automation Society (RAS) members, and those interested in learning more about RAS! The RAS leaders want to connect with you at the upcoming RAS Town Hall. They will be present to discuss current initiatives and future programs, and to hear your voice on the priorities of RAS and our community.
All in-person attendees of the Town Hall will be provided with a small RAS gift.
SAC and Young Reviewers Program (YRP) Social Hour
Tuesday, 2 June
7:00-8:30pm
Restaurant D at the VIECON
The Student Activities Committee (SAC) and Young Reviewers Program (YRP) have joined forces to create a memorable event to connect the community and to address some of the common questions that students have about the peer-review process.
These questions include:
If you are interested in learning more about these topics, then the SAC and YRP Social Hour is the perfect event for you!
The Young Reviewers Program (YRP) is designed to help RAS members learn about the best practices in peer review. This event is designed as an informal opportunity to learn more about RAS’s review process, discuss current challenges in peer review, and share practical guidelines for writing effective reviews, including emerging topics such as the role of AI in reviewing workflows.
Additional time will be available for students to get to know each other and network, making it easier to engage in thoughtful conversations on the future of robotics and automation during the remainder of the conference.
There is NO CHARGE for this event, but space is limited. Register in advance!
Science Communication Crash Course
Wednesday, 3 June
1:00-2:00pm
Hall C5 at the VIECON
Interested in sharing your robotics research with a broader audience?
Effective science communication is crucial. It bridges the gap between complex robotics concepts and diverse groups, including policymakers, business leaders, and the general public. As a researcher, honing this skill can not only improve your communication but also broaden your network and amplify the impact of your work.
In this concise tutorial, top science communicators in robotics and AI will guide you on how to present your research clearly and succinctly to non-specialists. You’ll discover how to steer clear of hype, select appropriate images and videos to showcase your work, and get started with social media. We’ll conclude with tips from mainstream media on how to reach a wider audience with your story.
Presenters:
Sabine Hauert (University of Bristol and Robohub)
Ella Scallan (Robohub)
Evan Ackerman (IEEE Spectrum)
Kohava Mendelsohn (IEEE Spectrum)
Publish or Perish: Surviving the Paper Deluge – Is AI the solution? If not, What is the Solution?
Wednesday, 3 June
3:00 – 4:30pm
Hall A1 (Plenary)
As the robotics community faces an unprecedented acceleration in publication volume, staying at the forefront of specific sub-fields like Learning from Demonstration (LfD) has become a monumental challenge. This panel, presented by members of the IEEE RAS Science and Technology Watch Board (STB) Science Monitoring Committee, explores the findings of a comprehensive one-year longitudinal study designed to navigate this “paper deluge.”
The session will dissect the evolving landscape of LfD, highlighting critical shifts in methodology, benchmarking, and cross-domain applications that emerged over the last twelve months. Beyond the technical trends, the STB will discuss the systemic implications of information overload on research quality and the innovative strategies—from automated synthesis to collaborative “watching”—that can help researchers maintain a clear vision amidst the flood of new data.
Moderator
Panelists/Speakers
Community Building Day
June 4, 2026
8:00am-6:00pm
Schubert 2 at the VIECON
Advances in Robotics and Automation are meant to benefit the world at large; therefore, we recognize the importance of ensuring that everyone feels welcome in the field of robotics. This year’s Community Building Day events aim to highlight the scientific merit of creating inclusive environments. Community Building Day is open to everyone at ICRA 2026. We encourage you to join us, learn more about how you can engage and promote inclusivity in our field, and support IEEE’s mission to foster technological innovation and excellence that benefit humanity.
IEEE/IFR Joint Forum on Innovation and Entrepreneurship
June 4, 2026
Innovation Stage
The IERA Award highlights and honors the achievements of inventors with value-creating ideas and entrepreneurs who propel those ideas into world-class products. The selected finalists will have the opportunity to present their story of the genesis of a successful innovative product in robotics and automation from its very inception to the final state of commercialization in a series of plenary lectures. The ultimate winner will be chosen by an evaluation board consisting of distinguished individuals from industry and academia.
IEEE/IFR Joint Forum on Innovation and Entrepreneurship schedule:
11:05-11:25am: The Nav2 Navigation Stack in ROS2
11:25-11:45am: Autonomous Warehouse Drones
11:45-12:05pm: The INDUROS Ecosystem
The IERA Award will be recognized during the ICRA 2026 Awards Lunch at 12:30-2:00pm.
ICRA 2026 Awards Lunch
June 4, 2026
12:30-2:00pm
VIECON – Hall A1
Join us in celebrating the most outstanding contributions in robotics and automation at the ICRA 2026 Awards Ceremony, where we honor excellence across four prestigious award categories:
Community Building Day Dinner
June 4, 2026
7:00 – 9:00pm
Wiener Rathauskeller
Rathausplatz 1 I 1010 Wien
We invite you to the Community Building Day Dinner, a celebration of our growing community, shared commitment to robotics, and the diverse lived and cultural experiences that enrich our efforts to use robotics for global good. If you would like to attend the dinner please register.
Registration form link: https://forms.gle/vsjmriSMtRUxrDS3A
