Ryo Morimoto, Assistant Professor of Anthropology, has been selected for the 2026–2027 Impact Lab Development Fellowship from Harvard Impact Labs. He is one of eight faculty members from seven Harvard schools chosen through a competitive process for this year’s cohort, and the only anthropologist in the group.

Prof. Morimoto’s project addresses a growing gap in how robots are built. Robots now appear more and more in classrooms, hospitals, public safety, and other settings where they work alongside people. Their design, however, is often shaped mainly by technical goals, with too little attention to the people who will actually use them. That disconnect can create safety risks, unclear regulation, and public distrust of new technology.

Through the fellowship, Prof. Morimoto will work with robotics companies, policymakers, and members of the public to develop anthroengineering. This approach brings social, ethical, and cultural considerations into robot design from the start, rather than adding them after the fact. The aim is robots that are safer, more accountable, and more beneficial to society.

Harvard Impact Labs launched in spring 2025 as a University-wide initiative based at Harvard Kennedy School. It helps faculty design solutions to major societal challenges.

Read the full announcement from Harvard Impact Labs.