IMPRS-IS faculty, scholars, and alumni are leading and contributing to several of the newly funded Grassroots Initiative projects for 2026, supporting fresh collaborations.
The Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems (MPI-IS) has announced the projects selected for funding through the Grassroots Initiative 2026. The program supports collaborative research and community-building activities across organizational units of the institute, with an emphasis on strengthening collaboration between the Stuttgart and Tübingen sites.
This year’s call underwent an internal peer review process, followed by evaluation from the Grassroots 2026 organizing committee. The MPI-IS Board of Directors has approved funding for the following projects, several of which feature contributions from members of the International Max Planck Research School for Intelligent Systems (IMPRS-IS).
Adaptive Magnetization Control with Real-Time Visual Feedback for Magnetic Microrobots Researchers: Buse Aktaş (IMPRS-IS faculty), Ahmed Hafez (IMPRS-IS associated postdoc), Michael Muehlebach (IMPRS-IS faculty)
MPI-IS Book Club & Think Salon Researchers: Maria-Paola Forte (IMPRS-IS scholar), Gaurav Gardi (IMPRS-IS alum & associated postdoc), Devin Sheehan, Po-An Pan (Jeffrey) (IMPRS-IS scholar), Pouria Esmaeil-Dokht (IMPRS-IS scholar), Muhammad Turab Ali Khan (IMPRS-IS scholar), Gunther Richter (IMPRS-IS associated faculty)
Physical Piano Play through Sim-to-Real Transfer Researchers: Dieter Büchler, Le Chen, Felix Grüninger, Katherine J. Kuchenbecker (IMPRS-IS faculty), Bernhard Schölkopf (IMPRS-IS faculty)
The Game of Allyship Researchers: Andria Smith (IMPRS-IS scholar), Ksenia Keplinger (IMPRS-IS associated faculty), Janneke Schwaner (IMPRS-IS faculty)
Wireless Neural Stimulation via PVDF-Multiferroic Nanocomposite Films Researchers: Daniela Macari, Asli Aydin, Mertcan Han, Yan Yu
Awarded projects will receive funding for the 2026 calendar year. Project teams will share progress and outcomes at an upcoming MPI-IS institute retreat.
Congratulations to the successful applicants, and sincere thanks to all members of the IMPRS-IS and MPI-IS community who contributed proposals, reviews, and organizational support.
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