MassRobotics celebrates 3rd Annual Women in Robotics Medal Gala

MassRobotics recently welcomed its community to the 3rd Annual Women in Robotics Medal Gala, a night dedicated to celebrating two women who are leading the way in robotics innovation and impact.

The gala is more than an awards ceremony, it’s a celebration of progress, mentorship and the collective power of the MassRobotics robotics ecosystem. This year’s event brought together industry leaders, academics, startup founders and students, all united by a shared goal: to honor the achievements of women shaping the future of robotics and to inspire the next generation to follow in their footsteps.

A night of recognition and gratitude

MassRobotics thanked Amazon Robotics for establishing an endowment to ensure that the medal recipients not only receive recognition but also a meaningful cash award.

Other sponsors and partners who helped make the gala possible include: Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, Harmonic Drive and Orrick.

Table sponsors include: Analog Devices, Boston University, Brown University, Locus Robotics, MIT CSAIL, MIT Media Lab’s Personal Robotics Group, UMass Amherst and UMass Lowell.

Attendees of the event included:

• MassRobotics executive director and RAC 26 speaker Tom Ryden
• Former CEO & president, Mass Technology Leadership Council, Tom Hopcroft
• Professor Daniela Rus, Director of MIT Computer and Artificial Intelligence Lab (CSAIL)
• MassRobotics Board chair and Amazon Robotics chief technologist Tye Brady
• Past rising star recipient Dr. Alyssa Pierson from Boston University
• 2024 medal recipient Professor Cynthia Breazeal from MIT’s Media Lab.

Empowering the next generation: The Jumpstart Fellowship

MassRobotics also celebrated the annual Girls Jumpstart Fellowship Program, a five-month Saturday program that provides high school girls with technical skills in CAD, programming, electronics and fabrication, as well as mentorship from industry leaders.

The fellowship, supported by La Fondation Dassault Systèmes, MassTech Collaborative, and UMass Lowell, has now graduated over 98 young women, most of whom have gone on to pursue STEM fields.

At this year’s event, Cohort 4, Jumpstart alumna and current UMass Amherst engineering student Mirudulaa Suginathan shared her journey and reflections on how the program shaped her path.

Celebrating women leading robotics

As part of the event, Brady reminded the attendees that while women make up only about 19% of the robotics engineering workforce, the tide is shifting - and with it, the future of robotics.

“We are not just building robots,” he said. “We are building a future where innovation knows no bounds and opportunity knows no gender.”

Honoring the 2025 Medal recipients

Professor Rus, an MIT professor and highly decorated roboticsist, introduced this year's medal recipients.

• Rising Star Medal: Professor Tania Morimoto, UC San Diego
  • Professor Morimoto was recognized for her groundbreaking work in soft and flexible medical robots and human-machine interfaces that improve access to high-quality healthcare. MassRobotics said her innovations bring us closer to a world where robotics enhances patient care, enabling safer, more precise and more accessible medical procedures.
• Robotics Medal: Professor Maja Matarić, University of Southern California
  • The Robotics Medal, accompanied by a $50,000 prize, was awarded to Professor Matarić for her pioneering contributions to socially assistive robotics - a field she helped define. Her work explores how robots can connect, motivate and care for people, with profound applications in rehabilitation, education and elder care.

In her acceptance speech, Professor Matarić reflected on her journey from Yugoslavia to MIT to USC, crediting her family, mentors and students for shaping her path.

“I wanted to be able to say to my children, ‘Mama makes robots to help people,’ so I had to make that come true,” she said. MassRobotics said her story embodied the spirit of the evening - intellect with empathy, and innovation with humanity.