Robotics & Automation Engineer
Insights and information on careers in robotics and artificial intelligence transformative technologies
QUT gives you the skill set to deal with the future challenges that the industry is going to face. It’s great to learn from such experienced professors and to see how they’re applying their research to real world scenarios.
KIRE GNANASOTHY Master of Robotics and AI student
Make a positive impact Study engineering
As an engineer you have the potential to make a significant impact by creating solutions to global challenges.
Design the World You Want To Live In
With the right STEM skills, the age of automation could mean big career potential
Professor Michael Milford
Director, QUT Centre for Robotics
Robots, automation and AI are revolutionising the way we work, live and play. Demand is booming for experts who can design and work with the tech driving this innovation. Job growth in robotics is expected to rise by 5.5 per cent in the next five years and the CSIRO predicts Australia needs 161,000 new AI workers by 2030.
At QUT Centre for Robotics, Australia’s leading robotics institute, we’re conducting world-leading research to help everyone – society, government and industry, as well as the environment. We’ve worked on countless ground-breaking projects – from designing drones to monitor remote Antarctic conditions, to programming submersible robots to protect the Great Barrier Reef.
I have the awesome opportunity to collaborate with an amazing group of researchers and students – every day is different. Right now we’re working on creating a universal alternative to GPS that can tell a person – or a robot – where it’s located in the world, without the risks that come with relying on GPS satellites.
At QUT, you could study a Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) (Mechatronics) or a Bachelor of
csiro predicts australia will need 161,000 new ai-savvy workers by 2030”
Engineering (Honours)/Master of Robotics and AI, to set you on the right career path.
We have a strong focus on making sure that AI tech is fit for purpose and designed with end-users involved. We’re particularly excited about how widespread AI techniques, like the technology behind ChatGPT, are enabling robots to become more useful day-to-day.
In this magazine, you’ll find all you need to know about engineering a rewarding career in robotics and automation. Meet professionals working in the field and discover the employers hiring.
Professor Michael Milford, Director, QUT Centre for Robotics
Automation nation
Forget everything you thought you knew about artificial intelligence. AI technologies are changing the game in almost all industries – think medicine, education, agriculture and conservation – automating tasks, increasing efficiency and revolutionising results.
In medicine, surgeons are increasingly relying on robotic systems to operate on patients with enhanced precision. In economics, ChatGPT capabilities are used to summarise data, identify trends and generate time-consuming reports. And in conservation, QUT researchers are employing robotic technologies to assist in sustainability and biodiversity efforts – harnessing drones to collect data in the most remote parts of Antarctica.
Supported by unis like QUT, Australia boasts a strong AI and robotics industry. If you’re skilled in programming and hardware design, consider your future self already hired, especially considering that the Tech Council of Australia predicts AI could create up to 200,000 local jobs by 2030.
Dr scarlett raine research fellow
As a research fellow at the QUT Centre for Robotics, dr Scarlett Raine knows a thing or two about a career in Artificial intelligence
Scarlett on…
Life at university: “QUT places an emphasis on practical and authentic learning. You’ll do a bunch of cool projects – we designed and built three different robots from scratch during my engineering degree (think: robots that play soccer against one another or robots for exploring Mars).”
Her current gig: “I design AI algorithms for underwater robots, so that they can analyse images of the ocean. My days involve writing code, running experiments on powerful computers, going out to the reef to collect data and field-testing our systems.”
Making an impact: “I love that I get to combine my technical skills in AI and robotics to help protect the ocean! Right now, I’m working on a system that uses AI to tell us where to plant baby corals so we can help make our reefs more resilient into the future. It’s like teaching robots to see underwater, so they can identify the best spots for coral restoration!”
Join the Club
Keen to supercharge your CV while you’re still studying? The QUT Robotics Club is a student club dedicated to supporting emerging engineers. Get involved in workshops, projects and competitions to develop your skills in robotic design, programming and engineering. Whether you’re a beginner or advanced, there’s something for everyone.
@qut.roboticsclub
In the bank
If you’re budgeting what a job in a robotics lab, design and development team or automation engineer is paying, Take a look at these numbers:
Graduate robotics engineer
$52K
Graduate automation engineer
$58K
A few years on the clock
$142K
A few years on the clock
$122K
NEW JOBS!
There are new and surprising roles in robotics and automation. Which One is for you?
[1]
Robot ethicist – you’ll be focused on all the ethical issues that are connected with artificial intelligence, robots, cyborg technologies and augmented and virtual reality.
[2]Assistant bot programmer – you’ll design humanoid robots to help humans. For example, robots that help children will do things like read nursery rhymes, personalise stories and teach basic numeracy and language skills, as well as supervise a child in real life and online.
Combine the Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) with a specialised Master degree
QUT offers a vertical degree in Bachelor of Engineering (Honours)/ Master of Robotics and AI. Join an exclusive group of high achievers in engineering. Make yourself more employable with skills that are in high demand by the world’s leading engineering and technology corporations. Supercharge your engineering degree by getting skilled up in automated systems and AI. Graduate with the skills needed to work as an engineer across a range of diverse industries – both in Australia and overseas.
skills spotlight
Robotics and automation are same, same but different. So, when it comes to choosing a career path, it’s easy to go either way...
[3]Antarctic researcher – you’ll join QUT’s team as part of the Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future Program, pilotting drones and using sensors and generative AI to help protect this fragile region.
[4]AI intellectual property negotiator – you will negotiate on behalf of AI entities that have created new things. You’ll also represent humans when AI has used their ideas without permission.
[5]Automation anomaly analyst – you’ll be the one we call when AI gets it wrong. This kind of analyst will tweak the algorithm to improve solutions, and will identify and ‘wind back’ the data inputs that led to incorrect results.
[6]Digital augmentation officer – you’ll work with companies to choose the right AI and tech solutions to assist with tasks within a business.
Mechatronics Maestro
As a QUT student, Asier Goñi’s robotics career was accelerated by an internship at BMW in Europe
After graduating high school – and a football stint overseas – Asier Goñi started thinking about the possibilities of engineering. He’d always been keen on knowing how things worked, but it was the creative, design-and-build element that pulled the science lover into mechatronics at QUT.
“QUT stood out because of its welcoming community and city-centre campus,” says Asier of his uni choice. “You’re taught by experts actively working on cutting-edge projects – from agricultural and marine robots to robotics destined for space – so it’s really inspiring.”
It didn’t take long for Asier to realise that engineering – and in particular, robotics – was his thing. He rates the field for its endless possibilities, and the QUT Centre for Robotics (QCR) became his second home. Along the way, he gained hands-on experience in industry through internships at both Tritium and Aurecon, before a pathway-changing opportunity took him overseas to work with BMW’s manufacturing division.
Switching gears
On a mission for on-the-job experience, Asier spent seven months with BMW’s diverse team in the Netherlands and Germany – an opportunity made possible by their partnership with QUT. The collaboration, communication and leadership
skills he gained while leading his own projects supercharged his CV before he’d even finished uni.
“The expertise, technology and engineering scale were incredible – factories as big as small European towns,” he says. “Driving some cool cars was an awesome bonus, too!”
After returning to Australia, Asier landed his current role as a Research Assistant at QCR. These days, he spends his time researching, experimenting, coding new systems and collaborating with colleagues – but he says hanging out with robots is the best part.
“I’ve spent the past year integrating large language models into robotics to enhance their contextual awareness and proactive abilities,” he says. “I’m developing systems to monitor the growth of tank-grown coral for the Great Barrier Reef.”
And with all that spare time Asier has while holding down such a cool job? He’s working on his own project – BinSight, a smart bin that detects and classifies waste to reduce contamination in waste facilities.
“This path has given me the tools to create anything!” he says. “If you’re wondering if mechatronics or robotics is right for you, just start creating and don’t be afraid to experiment.”
qut stood out because of its welcoming community and campus”
Asier Goñi research assistant
Engineering healthcare innovation
QUT graduate Deanna Hood shares her next-gen engineering career on TikTok
Deanna and robots go way back. The futureforward thinker was just 15 when she kickstarted a Bachelor of Mathematics/ Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) (Electrical) at QUT, where she was initially drawn to the technical challenges in the field. “This is what I called the ‘what’ of my career in robotics,” says the Europe-based grad. “Since then though, I’ve discovered my ‘why’.”
Through the real-world projects she tackled at uni, Deanna began to see the impact that technologists can make in people’s lives. She became determined to make a difference, and became passionate about robotics for social good.
“I started using robotics and electrical engineering to improve people’s lives,” she says. “I’m keen to help people see the altruistic applications of STEM.”
After graduating in 2011, and doing a mobility Master in Computer Vision and Robotics across four different European unis, Deanna took on a long list of rewarding engineering positions, spanning nine countries in industries as diverse as conservation, agriculture and medicine. And no day – or project – is ever the same.
Her CV already boasts using robotics to help kids with handwriting difficulties, assisting
i started using robotics and electrical engineering to change people’s lives... I’m keen to help”
burns surgeons with skin-printing capabilities and writing software used by NASA rovers to assist in moon exploration. And then there are the big awards she’s scored along the way (QUT’s Outstanding Young Alumnus), community- led projects she’s headed up (repairing medical equipment in Nicaragua) and epic speaking engagements she’s taken on (TEDx@Sydney).
Social star
These days, based in Europe, Deanna has made a career around her ‘why’, with robotics giving her the flexibility to work remotely, take on meaningful projects and travel in-between.
And when she’s not saving the world one ’bot at a time? Deanna is championing diversity on TikTok, empowering girls to get into robotics, busting myths and smashing stereotypes.
“It’s important to feel part of a community,” she says in one of her videos. “I always seek out spaces where I’m not the only woman in a room – like women in tech events.”
deanna hood Robotics engineer
Get qualified Get the job!
Finishing high school and wondering what to study?
Want to fast-track your career and graduate with cutting-edge, future-proof skills (and two degrees under your belt) in just five years?
QUT’s Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) / Master of Robotics and Artificial Intelligence vertical double degree will equip you with foundational engineering skills (with four engineering majors to choose from), as well as the advanced technical and project management skills you need to kickstart a career in robotics and AI when you graduate.
For some of the coolest developments in the robotics and automation world, hit search on these exciting innovators
Instagram @openai
AI content generation is so hot right now. Follow OpenAI on IG for daily doses of cool, quirky ideas powered by computers. Then click the link in their bio to have a play with the cool tech yourself!
TikTok @sineadbovell
Futurist and entrepreneur Sinead Bovell is over on TikTok dishing up some pretty cool insights into the world of AI and automation, including how it might impact future careers. Her company called WAYE is all about educating young people about business, tech and the future. Give her feed a follow, stat.
YouTube Simone Giertz
Simone is a self-described “inventor and breaker of things” and her YT channel is great for a giggle. Plus, you get to see simple, creative robotics built with imagination and innovation.
