Accolades: Jonsson School Researchers, Students Earn Honors

The International Federation of Automatic Control (IFAC) recently recognized two faculty members from The University of Texas at Dallas for their extensive contributions to their fields.

Dr. Reza Moheimani, professor and department head of systems engineering and James Von Ehr Distinguished Chair in Science and Technology, received the IFAC Mechatronic Systems Lifetime Achievement Award. Dr. Mark W. Spong, professor of systems engineering and electrical and computer engineering and Excellence in Education Chair, received the IFAC Robotics Lifetime Achievement Award.

Both researchers in the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science were recognized at the joint IFAC Symposia on Mechatronics and Robotics, which was held July 15-18 at Sorbonne University in Paris. IFAC is a multinational organization dedicated to the study of automatic control.

“Mark Spong and Reza Moheimani have been tremendous scholars, friends and faculty members,” said Dr. Stephen Yurkovich, professor of systems engineering and Louis Beecherl Jr. Distinguished Chair in Engineering. “Systems engineering as well as all of UT Dallas are so lucky to have these two as colleagues and friends.”

Moheimani’s research focuses on high-precision mechatronic systems such as micro-electro-mechanical systems and tools for nanoscale quantum device fabrication. He has received funding from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy.

“I am incredibly humbled and grateful to receive the IFAC Mechatronic Systems Lifetime Achievement Award,” Moheimani said. “To be recognized among such distinguished past recipients, whose work I deeply respect, is a privilege. This award truly celebrates the dedication and brilliance of my past students, postdocs and collaborators across industry and academia; their hard work and innovative spirit were instrumental in every achievement.”

At UT Dallas, he has contributed to technology commercialization for quantum device manufacturing and to the development of new scanning probe microscope technologies, including improving fabrication techniques for atomic-level manufacturing and design of an atomic force microscope that fits on a chip.

Spong, co-author of Robot Modeling and Control and Robot Dynamics and Control, is well known for his contributions to robotics and control systems research and teaching.

“It is indeed an honor to be recognized by one’s peers in this way,” Spong said. “I am humbled by the thought that there are so many of my colleagues in robotics that are equally deserving of this award, and I thank the IFAC awards committee for choosing me.”

Throughout his career, Spong’s research has focused on establishing physics-based theoretical foundations of robot control. He directs the Laboratory for Autonomous Robotics and Systems where he is developing new control theories supporting autonomous and tele-operated robotic systems, including autonomous networked robotics, control of bipedal walking robots and human-in-the-loop telemanipulation.

Student Team Finishes in Top 8 in Amazon AI Challenge

A University of Texas at Dallas team finished as one of eight finalists in the inaugural Amazon Nova AI Challenge, a global competition designed to strengthen the security of software developed by artificial intelligence (AI) coding assistants.

The UTD team, called Team ASTRO (AI Security and Trustworthiness Operations), advanced to the final round at a remote tournament in June. As a finalist, the team presented its research at the Amazon Nova AI Summit in Seattle in July. The team’s research was published in the 1^st Proceedings of Amazon Nova AI Challenge.

The students competed as an “attack” team tasked with finding vulnerabilities and flaws in code-generating models developed by “defender” teams.

Working as an attack team changed students’ understanding of AI security, said Zexin (Jason) Xu, a computer science doctoral student who led the team.

“Perhaps most importantly, we’ve come to appreciate that effective AI security requires thinking like both an attacker and defender simultaneously, understanding not just how systems break but why they break in the ways they do,” Xu said.

Each of the 10 teams that qualified for the tournament received $250,000 in sponsorship, $150,000 per month for eight months in Amazon Web Services credits, for a total of $1.45 million in support, and the chance to compete for top prizes. The teams were selected from over 90 proposals across the globe.

“Beyond the financial support, the opportunity to engage with other teams, Amazon researchers and industry experts has been invaluable,” Xu said. “We’ve formed connections that will extend well beyond this competition, creating a community focused on making AI systems safer and more reliable.”

Xu said the team plans to continue its research and enter next year’s competition.

“This challenge represents exactly the kind of industry-academia collaboration needed to tackle AI’s most pressing challenges,” Xu said. “It’s not just a competition; it’s a catalyst for advancing responsible AI development. We’re honored to be part of this inaugural cohort and look forward to contributing our findings to the broader AI security community.”

Other team members include computer science doctoral students Ravishka Rathnasuriya, Tingxi Li and Zihe Song; Jun Ren BS’24; computer science senior Bhavesh Mandalapu; and mechanical engineering doctoral student Soroush Setayeshpour.

Dr. Wei Yang, associate professor of computer science in the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science, and Dr. Xinya Du, assistant professor of computer science, serve as faculty advisors for the team.

Accolades is an occasional News Center feature that highlights recent accomplishments of The University of Texas at Dallas faculty, students and staff. To submit items for consideration, contact your school’s communications manager.