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About

Ana Pervan is a pioneering researcher at the intersection of robotics, materials science, and embodied intelligence. Her work reimagines how computation and physical structure can merge, creating systems where the material itself performs logical functions. She is best known for her groundbreaking 2019 paper, "A robot made of robots," which introduced the concept of "smarticles"—small, simple robotic modules that collectively self-propel and coordinate without a central controller. This work, with nearly 100 citations, has become a cornerstone in the field of collective robotic systems. Pervan has since advanced the vision of "colloidal robotics," exploring how microscopic particles can be programmed to compute and move, and has developed low-complexity control policies for synthetic cells. Her concept of "algorithmic materials" embeds computation directly into material properties, enabling autonomy without traditional electronics. With a growing body of work spanning from emergent transport to embodied intelligence, Pervan is shaping a future where robots are not built, but grown—where matter itself becomes the machine.