01
swarms · mechanisms · embodied intelligence · estimation
We build simple robots and mechanisms to see how local rules give global function: light-seeking swarms that build and dig, a scissor linkage that morphs and writes, and an elastic strip that senses and actuates itself. We also work on optimal estimation and control.
02
generative models · reinforcement learning · statistical physics
We use statistical physics and control theory to understand why machine learning works: the dynamics of generative models, reinforcement learning as control, and how models generalise.
Recent work
Statistical performance of large vision models
Work in progress
Generalization of neural networks close to bifurcation points
Work in progress
03
decision making · posture & locomotion · stigmergy · collectives
We model how animals, alone and in groups, act with limited information and noisy senses: a snake balancing upright, ant colonies choosing food through pheromone trails, bees recruiting with airflow, and people trading speed against accuracy when they bet.
Recent work
2026 · Royal Society Interface
2022 · Proc. Roy. Soc. A.
04
instability · filaments & sheets · elastocapillarity · design
We study how thin sheets, filaments and droplets change shape when elasticity, surface tension and geometry compete, and how geometry can be used to design a response, as in popup structures and reconfigurable assemblies.
Recent work
2026 · arXiv
Earlier · Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci.
Earlier · Physical Review Fluids
Earlier · Soft Matter