As industries integrate AI more pervasively into their workflows and supply chains, they will need research expertise to guide them, as well as skilled engineers with a background in the field. They’ll find both at UMD. Lee’s aim in the coming years is to build up the center into a research and education powerhouse, drawing potentially hundreds of graduate students and postdocs to conduct research, while creating opportunities for both undergraduate and graduate students to gain skills and knowhow.

The catch? Hydrogen presents safety challenges that differ from those posed by gas-powered engines. Not only is hydrogen flammable, like gasoline, Groth said, but its properties make it more prone to leaks than is the case with other fuels. That doesn’t mean that hydrogen-powered vehicles can’t be safe, but it does mean that engineers must understand and find ways of addressing the particular safety challenges. “The last thing we want to do is decarbonize and kill people in the process,” she said.

The choice to validate their strategy by beating the first level of Super Mario Bros in real time was motivated by science just as much as it was by fun. Because the video game’s timing and level make-up are established, and just a single mistake can lead to an immediate game over, playing Mario provided a new means for evaluating soft robot performance that is uniquely challenging in a manner not typically tackled in the field.