Samarjit Das (’10 PhD electrical engineering) is a rapidly rising leader in artificial intelligence innovations for a new space age, creating technologies for advancing both human and robotic space exploration.
After graduating with a PhD from Iowa State and completing a postdoctoral fellowship at the Robotics Institute at Carnegie Mellon University, Das joined Bosch Research in Pittsburgh, as a research scientist. Over the next few years, Das quickly climbed the ranks to his current position as lead principal researcher and senior manager of Bosch’s artificial intelligence efforts.
He’s led a successful SoundSee mission to the International Space Station in partnership with NASA, testing out novel sensing technology that uses AI to analyze subtle acoustic clues for critical systems and equipment health monitoring. And, he is working on a NASA-funded project to develop miniature autonomous lunar rovers. For this and other discoveries, Das holds 11 patents and has received a Bosch USA Inventor of the Year Award and Carnegie Science Award in Innovation.
While he’s passionate about space exploration, Das is also committed to using space-tech research to solve challenges here on earth. He established and now leads a Bosch-Highmark Health partnership for developing new audio AI technologies to improve pediatric care. Das also is a founding member of the Keystone Space Collaborative, a space industry group.
In addition to his Iowa State degree, Das holds a bachelor’s degree in electronics and communications engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT). He also sits on the board of the Moonshot Museum in Pittsburgh.
Das is married to Ankita Das and they have one daughter, Antarikxa, whose name means “space” in Sanskrit.