CyLab researchers present findings from the Robotics Security and Privacy Workshop in a new technical report and upcoming seminar

As robots increasingly move from research labs into homes, hospitals, factories, and critical infrastructure, ensuring their security and privacy has become a pressing global challenge.

To address this growing need, Carnegie Mellon University’s CyLab Security and Privacy Institute hosted a Robotics Security and Privacy Workshop July 28-29, 2025, bringing together researchers, policymakers, and industry leaders to define key challenges and outline a vision for building a trustworthy robotics ecosystem that is secure by design.

Now, the workshop organizers have summarized its findings in a technical report published this week, and they’ll be presenting the takeaways at a CyLab Seminar Series event on Monday, October 20.

The seminar, “Towards a Safe, Secure, and Privacy-Preserving Robotics Ecosystem,” is free to attend and open to the public. It takes place from noon to 1 p.m. ET at Simmons Auditorium B in the Tepper Quad, and participants can attend in person or virtually via Zoom. Registration is required, and interested participants can register online to attend.

The workshop emphasized that robotic security can no longer be viewed in isolation. Instead, it requires a holistic, system-wide approach that accounts for the interplay between hardware, software, artificial intelligence, and human operators.

At the seminar, four of the CyLab faculty members who co-authored the report will join Jorge Guajardo Merchan, principal scientist and senior manager at the Robert Bosch LLC – Research and Technology Center, in synthesizing the workshop findings through the framework of its four key issue areas:

• Foundational Concepts: Defining Threats and Approaches
• Core Components and Supply Chain:From Hardware to Software
• Evaluation Frameworks
• External Factors: The Human and Regulatory Context

In addition to the seminar, CMU experts in robotics, AI, cybersecurity, and privacy are laying the groundwork for a broader CyLab Robotics Security and Privacy Initiative (RSPI) focused on building a safe, secure, privacy-preserving robotics ecosystem that is trustworthy by design in an increasingly autonomous world. Its mission is to conduct foundational and applied research to build trusted middleware and toolchains, ensuring operational efficiency and security by design to meet the demands of future applications across diverse sectors.

RSPI currently invites collaboration with academic, government, and industry partners. For collaboration inquiries, please contact Michael Lisanti, CyLab senior director of partnerships, at mlisanti@cmu.edu or 412-268-1870.

Read the technical report “Towards a Safe, Secure, and Privacy-Preserving Robotics Ecosystem”

Learn more and register to attend the CyLab Seminar on October 20