Can Robots Bring People Closer: Bengisu Çağıltay

Most conversations about robotics stay in the industry setting. But what happens when a robot walks into a family's living room, or a hospital ward?In this pilot episode of [human] in the RoboLoop, host Zehra Mutlu sits down with Dr. Bengisu Çağıltay — Assistant Professor at Koç University and a pioneer in social robotics — for a conversation that feels less like an interview and more like discovering a new way of thinking about technology.Bengisu takes us from her early days building at LEGO tournaments to her current research bridging engineering and social sciences, and shares how that path shaped her belief that robots shouldn't just work — they should support, connect, and sometimes even heal. We talk about the small, quietly powerful moments her research has uncovered: a robot sparking conversation between family members, or helping a hospitalized child stay close to loved ones from a distance.The conversation moves through real, tangible ground and what it really means to design interaction that amplifies human connection rather than replacing it. Bengisu's vision is refreshingly grounded: technology as a bridge, not a barrier.This episode is for anyone curious about the human side of robotics — students, parents, educators, and innovators alike — who want to understand what it might really look like when technology learns to care.🎧 A conversation about robots, but really, it's a conversation about us. Welcome to the very first episode of Human in the RoboLoop!