In the News

Press & Media Coverage

2026

Carnegie Mellon University

Carnegie Mellon University: CMU's off-road robots improve efficiency and human safety at industrial sites and farms.

Carnegie Mellon University

Carnegie Mellon University: SURF project scales new heights in rescue robotics, featuring undergraduate researcher Leo Wang.

Carnegie Mellon University

Carnegie Mellon University: Lifesaving search-and-rescue robots expand testing grounds at new CMU facility.

2025

Carnegie Mellon University - Mechanical Engineering

Carnegie Mellon University - Mechanical Engineering: The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) names Professor Aaron Johnson an ASME Fellow for his outstanding contributions to research, robot design, and modeling.

Carnegie Mellon University

Carnegie Mellon University: Undergraduate researcher Ben Gu shares his experience with the 1-DoF robot Mugatu during CMU's Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF).

TechEBlog

TechEBlog: Zippy is the smallest self-contained bipedal robot in the world. Also featured in IEEE Spectrum, CMU News in 2025, and CMU News in 2026.

IEEE Spectrum

IEEE Spectrum: Professor Aaron Johnson gives a talk on generating locomotion strategies that address uncertainty in dynamics and contact conditions.

2024

Carnegie Mellon University Engineering

Carnegie Mellon University Engineering: Researchers from Carnegie Mellon University are using robotics and AI to understand soil and plant quality.

Carnegie Mellon University Engineering

Carnegie Mellon University Engineering: Robomechanics Lab alumna Natha Singhasaneh designs toys to teach kids about science and engineering at CrunchLabs.

Carnegie Mellon University Engineering

Carnegie Mellon University Engineering: Picotaur, the first legged robot of its size to run, turn, push loads, and climb miniature stairs. Also featured in IEEE Spectrum and Hackster.io.

Carnegie Mellon University Engineering

Carnegie Mellon University Engineering: Postdoctoral researcher Aja Carter and other roboticists discuss paleobionics in a podcast.

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Pittsburgh's Carnegie Museum of Natural History celebrates the 125th birthday of "Dippy" by welcoming postdoctoral researcher Aja Carter to discuss robo-paleontology.

TechEBlog

TechEBlog: First look at LORIS, an innovative rock-climbing robot with microspine grippers. Also featured in IEEE Spectrum, New Atlas, Tomorrow's World Today, MSN Microsoft Start, and Interesting Engineering.

2023

Carnegie Mellon University

Carnegie Mellon University: Carnegie Mellon holds groundbreaking ceremony for the Robotics Innovation Center. Also featured in The Pittsburgh Business Journal and CBS News Pittsburgh.

TechXplore

TechXplore: A bipedal robot that can walk using just one actuator. Also featured in Discover Magazine, The Arduino Blog, Carnegie Mellon University Engineering, Hackster.io, Interesting Engineering, New Atlas, IEEE Spectrum, Weekly Robotics, and ASME.

Popular Science

Popular Science: Watch robot dogs train on obstacle courses to avoid tripping. Also featured in Carnegie Mellon University Engineering, Interesting Engineering, and ASME.

TechXplore

TechXplore: A new design that equips robots with proprioception and a tail. Also featured in IEEE Spectrum Video Friday.

Carnegie Mellon University Engineering

Carnegie Mellon University Engineering: Gwen's Girls partnership fosters children's interest in robomechanics.

2022

Reuters

Reuters: Elon Musk faces skeptics as Tesla gets ready to unveil 'Optimus' robot. Also quoted in another Reuters article.

Carnegie Mellon University Engineering

Carnegie Mellon University Engineering: Dean's Early Career Fellows announced.

Carnegie Mellon University Engineering

Carnegie Mellon University Engineering: Open-source software gives a leg up to robot research. Also featured in IEEE Spectrum Video Friday and Weekly Robotics.

Carnegie Mellon University

Carnegie Mellon University: Roboticists go off road to compile data that could train self-driving ATVs. Also featured in IEEE Spectrum Video Friday.

IEEE Spectrum

IEEE Spectrum: A first small step toward a Lego-size humanoid robot. Also featured in Weekly Robotics.

Carnegie Mellon University Robotics Institute

Carnegie Mellon University Robotics Institute: CMU research earns top honors at the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation.

2021

ASME DSCD Podcast Series

ASME DSCD Podcast Series: Guest Prof. Aaron Johnson. Podcast interview.

IEEE Spectrum - Automation

IEEE Spectrum - Automation: The Cheetah's fluffy tail points the way for robots with high-speed agility. Also featured in TechCrunch, Interesting Engineering, and TechXplore.

2020

IEEE Spectrum - Automation

IEEE Spectrum - Automation: Supporting Black scholars in robotics. Article written with Prof. Henny Admoni and Prof. Carlotta Berry.

Venture Beat

Venture Beat: How the pandemic is influencing robotics research. Article.

Carnegie Mellon University

Carnegie Mellon University: Johnson received NSF CAREER Award. Press release.

IEEE Spectrum - Automation

IEEE Spectrum - Automation: How roboticists and robots have been working from home. Article and quote.

PBS

PBS: How to Build an Engineer: Joe Norby. Television appearance.

Carnegie Mellon University

Carnegie Mellon University: Making Tracks in the Desert. Press release. Also featured in the NASA Research Park Post.

2019

Carnegie Mellon University

Carnegie Mellon University: Pushing Robotics Uphill. Press release.

Future Tech Podcast

Future Tech Podcast: Designing robots that meet the challenges of the real world. Podcast interview.

IEEE Spectrum - Automation

IEEE Spectrum - Automation: T-RHex is a hexapod robot with microspines on its feet. Article on a student class project. Also featured in Hackaday, CNET, Digital Trends, and TechXplore.

Carnegie Mellon University

Carnegie Mellon University: Johnson wins ARO Young Investigator Award. Press release.

2018

IEEE Spectrum - Automation

IEEE Spectrum - Automation: MiniRHex makes wiggly-legged unstoppability tiny and affordable. Article and interview on MiniRHex.

Hackster.io

Hackster.io: You can build the capable and flippin’ cute MiniRHex robot for just $200. Article on MiniRHex.

Ozobot

Ozobot: How robots and tech keep animals healthy, safe, and happy. Article.

IEEE Spectrum - Automation

IEEE Spectrum - Automation: Video Friday featuring 24-775 Robot Design and Experimentation: Student Projects and student team videos.

Carnegie Mellon University Engineering

Carnegie Mellon University Engineering: CMU team in NASA Mars ice drilling competition. Article on the student team advised by the Robomechanics Lab for the NASA RASC-AL Mars Ice Challenge. Also featured in Carnegie Mellon University, TribLIVE, Pittsburgh Business Times, and NASA 360.

Carnegie Mellon University

Carnegie Mellon University: Meeting of the Minds a "Quintessential Carnegie Mellon Event." Press release featuring student Dhruv Khurana and Minitaur.

Science 360

Science 360: Robots that can go anywhere in the world. Video and interview.

2017

Summer@CMU Newsletter

Summer@CMU Newsletter: Summer student profile: Hardik Singh. Article and interview with undergraduate student Hardik Singh.

IEEE Spectrum - Automation

IEEE Spectrum - Automation: Video Friday featuring Robots That Can Go Anywhere in the World.

ASME Mechanical Engineering Magazine

ASME Mechanical Engineering Magazine: A leg up on robomechanics. Article and interview.

Recode

Recode: Robots copy their coolest moves from animals. Article and interview.

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: CMU and Tata Consultancy Services partner for the "4th Industrial Revolution." Article on TCS groundbreaking that featured XRL delivering a brick to the ceremony and student Catherine Pavlov representing the department. Also featured in the CMU press release.

2016

CMU Mechanical Engineering

CMU Mechanical Engineering: Robomechanics: Aaron Johnson's robotic zoo. Press release about the creation of the Robomechanics Lab.

The Washington Post

The Washington Post: Robots could eventually replace soldiers in warfare. Is that a good thing? Article written with Vivek Wadhwa. Also appeared in The Huffington Post, Singularity Hub, and others. Also discussed by The Armstrong and Getty Show, Future Left Podcast, and Reddit.

Archive

Older News

Press and media coverage of Prof. Johnson's prior work.

2016

Robotics Tomorrow

Robotics Tomorrow: Seven walking robots. Featuring X-RHex.

2015

IEEE Spectrum - Automation

IEEE Spectrum - Automation: Video Friday featuring two contributed projects: Jerboa leaping and HERB sorting blocks.

Make - Rockstar Robots

Make - Rockstar Robots: Boston Dynamics’ Crazy-Legged RHex. Featuring leaping behaviors and X-RHex.

2014

IEEE Spectrum - Automation

IEEE Spectrum - Automation: Video Friday: RHex pronking. Featuring XRL pronking, presented at an RSS workshop.

Penn News

Penn News: Robotics at the University of Pennsylvania. Featuring parkour behaviors.

Maxon Precision Motors

Maxon Precision Motors: Hexapedal robot. Featuring X-RHex.

2013

The Daily Pennsylvanian

The Daily Pennsylvanian: We know what you engineered last summer. Featuring XRL.

Wall Street Journal News Hub

Wall Street Journal News Hub: All-Terrain Robot, or Overexcited Puppy? Live interview about RHex parkour behaviors introduced at ICRA. Also covered by The Associated Press, The Associated Press video, The Telegraph, CNN.com What's Next Blog, Technical.ly Philly, BuzzFeed, Eye Opener, Huffington Post, AOL, and Red Orbit.

UPenn

UPenn: A Robot That Jumps, Flips, and Does Pull-ups. Official press release for the RHex the Parkour Robot video. Also featured in IEEE Spectrum - Automation, Computerworld, The Atlantic, Slate, Fast Company - Co.EXIST Blog, Gizmag, Slashdot, Kotaku, Gizmodo, io9, Engadget, CNET, Boing Boing, and Huffington Post UK.

Mashable

Mashable: Jumping, swimming, climbing robot will blow you away. Collection of clips including leaping, reactive behaviors, Boston Dynamics RHex, and Aqua versions of RHex.

IEEE Spectrum - Automation

IEEE Spectrum - Automation: This Robot’s Acrobatic Leaps Are the Coolest Thing You’ll See Today. ICRA 2013 videos of RHex leaping. Also featured in Gizmodo, Engadget, Phys.org, Vsauce, The Engineer, Nikkei, imgur, Cheezburger, and Reddit.

2012

The Daily Pennsylvanian

The Daily Pennsylvanian: Engineering lab develops bug-like robots. Interview with Aaron Johnson.

The Naked Scientist

The Naked Scientist: Radio interview with Aaron Johnson on robot tails.

IEEE Spectrum - Automation

IEEE Spectrum - Automation: XRL Hexapod Robot Gets a Tail, Learns to Use It. Covering the XRL tail introduced at CLAWAR 2012 in collaboration with the Poly-PEDAL Lab. Also featured in Slashdot, Wired, Engadget, Huffington Post - UK, Fast Company, Phys.org, Geek, and Ubergizmo.

2011

Singularity Hub

Singularity Hub: This robot can learn to run anywhere, just try and stop it. Article on a variety of RHex robots including X-RHex, Desert RHex, and proprioceptive behavior on EduBot.

IEEE Spectrum - Automation

IEEE Spectrum - Automation: X-RHex was one of the top 10 videos of the month. Also featured in Fast Company and io9.

2008

CNET

CNET: A snake-inspired robot. Coverage of the modular snake robot project from the Biorobotics Lab, many featuring this video. Also featured in Slashdot, Make, Gizmodo, Engadget, and The Robot Report.