Get to know your Profs with Mo Chen
By Aarjun Teja
Mo Chen is an Assistant Professor in the School of Computing Science at SFU, where he directs the Multi-Agent Robotic Systems Lab. He is a CIFAR AI Chair and an Amii Fellow. Mo completed his PhD in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of California, Berkeley in 2017, and received his BASc in Engineering Physics from the University of British Columbia in 2011. From 2017 to 2018, He was a postdoctoral researcher in the Aeronautics and Astronautics Department in Stanford University. Mo’s research interests include multi-agent systems, safety-critical systems, human-robot interactions, control theory, and reinforcement learning.
1. What influenced your decision to study computer science, and why did you choose to focus on Robotics?
I played on a computer running MS-DOS when I was 3 years old, and I loved computers since then. I also love math and physics, so I enjoy robotics due to its multidisciplinary nature. Robotics research involves challenges in theory, software, and hardware; these challenges are especially fascinating when multiple humans interact with multiple robots.
2. What has been your proudest scholarly achievement so far?
It’s hard to pin down a single achievement. Perhaps it would be my first publication as the leading author.
3. What’s your favorite thing about teaching and doing research at SFU? Any fond memories of your time at SFU?
Having taught and advised many students at top institutions such as UC Berkeley and Stanford, I can say that SFU has some of the best students in the world. Working with them and seeing them grow professionally so quickly gives me a great sense of satisfaction.
SFU is home to some of the world’s best researchers in fields surrounding robotics, such as computer vision, natural language processing, machine learning, and computer graphics and animation. Everyone is knowledgeable, friendly, and open to collaborations. It’s always a pleasure to combine our expertise.
4. What is your most recent research focus or project you are working on?
Our latest research publication in the multi-agent robotic systems (MARS) lab is on human motion prediction and robot follow-ahead. We hope to eventually develop robotic systems such as autonomous shopping carts that automatically stay in front of a person at stores, and robots that can safely and naturally co-exist with humans in spaces such as schools and malls.
5. What is your favourite programming language and why?
I’m pretty agnostic here; I really like C and C++ just because they are the first languages I learned.
6. What fueled your success in grad school, and what will be your advice to current and future grad students?
Many things fueled my success at grad school, most of all my peers. Besides building a strong academic foundation for our work in the future, it is equally if not more important to make connections with our peers, who will be engineers, computer scientists, researchers, and leaders of the future. Yes, it’s cliché, but it’s so true. Don’t underestimate this!
Interested in our Master of Visual Computing Program? Learn more about it here