Eric Paulos is an American computer scientist, artist, and inventor, best known for his early work on internet robotic teleoperation and is considered a founder of the field of Urban Computing. Dr. Paulos is the Director of the Living Environments Lab and an Assistant Professor in the Human-Computer Interaction Institute with a secondary faculty appointment in the Robotics Institute both within the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University. Previously he was senior research scientist at Intel Research in Berkeley, CA, where he joined the staff in 2002 and founded the Urban Atmospheres research group - challenged to employ innovative methods to explore urban life and the future fabric of emerging technologies across public urban landscapes. Dr Paulos' areas of expertise span a deep body of research territory in urban computing, sustainability, green design, environmental awareness, social telepresence, robotics, physical computing, interaction design, persuasive technologies, and intimate media. Eric is a leading figure in the field of urban computing and is a regular contributor, editorial board member, and reviewer for numerous professional journals and conferences. His published work is primarily in the areas of Robotics, Urban Computing, Human-Computer Interaction, Computer supported cooperative work, and Ubicomp. He received his PhD in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from UC Berkeley where he helped launch a new robotic industry by developing some of the first internet tele-operated robots including Space Browsing helium filled blimps and Personal Roving Presence devices (PRoPs).
Born and raised in California, Eric received a B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from the University of California, Berkeley, completing his Ph.D. in 2001. Eric has also collaborated with Mark Pauline of Survival Research Laboratories since 1994.
In September 2008, Eric joined the faculty at Carnegie Mellon University's Human-Computer Interaction Institute where he founded a new lab, the Living Environments Lab, to explore environmental issues and sustainability scoped within HCI and Ubicomp research.