Design

Material intelligence

11/10/25 — Science meets shapeshifting at the Morphing Matter Lab

Berkeley alums develop at-home robotic rehabilitation device

10/20/25 — ATDev co-founders advance new possibilities for assistive technologies

Rows of metatruss robots in different shapes.

Mighty morphing robots

09/30/25 — New AI-driven design tool optimizes performance and functionality without complex control systems

Wall of acoustic foam panels in criss-cross pattern cast in red and blue light.

A smarter approach to designing metamaterials

07/22/25 — AI-driven framework creates defect-tolerant materials with complex functionality

Professor Lining Yao with models created in the Morphing Matter Lab.

Inspired by nature, engineering professor’s designs fold, move and morph

07/03/25 — UC Berkeley’s Morphing Matter Lab is transforming what’s possible in engineering design with their biomimetic materials

Drew McPherson and Hannah Stuart demonstrate the newest version of the Dorsal Grasper in the Embodied Dexterity Group’s lab at UC Berkeley.

Q+A on assistive devices

06/11/25 — The Dorsal Grasper enables grasping with supernumerary robotic fingers on the back of the user's hand.

The chameleon effect

06/11/25 — A chameleon-inspired electromagnetic material could someday make vehicles and aircraft invisible to radar.

Spring design showcase

06/09/25 — Students unveiled a wide range of projects, prototypes and research at the Jacobs Hall event.

Ashmita Kumar, UC Berkeley M.E.T. student.

Ashmita Kumar’s startup aims to detect signs of stroke and save lives

03/31/25 — Using AI and an iPhone, Berkeley EECS student seeks to improve stroke health care

The Dorsal Grasper assistive device, developed by UC Berkeley engineers, facilitates human-robot collaborative grasping. Its supernumerary robotic fingers on the back of the hand are grasping a tennis ball.

New assistive device enhances grasping for people with spinal cord injuries

02/10/25 — Dorsal Grasper provides an intuitive, collaborative grasping approach

Brightly colored chameleon clutching leaves.

New electromagnetic material draws inspiration from the color-shifting chameleon

01/15/25 — Applications include defense, wireless communications, energy and smart infrastructure

A grey reef shark, Cairns Aquarium, Australia.

A shark of inspiration

11/20/24 — A textured surface designed to mimic shark skin can reduce drag and mitigate noise on underwater sonar systems.

Nine people stand in front of a small stage. Two people at the center are holding a small trophy.

Winners of 2024 CITRIS Aviation Prize reach great heights

05/31/24 — CITRIS: UC Berkeley team received the Joby Aviation Award for Best Overall Design and the CITRIS Aviation Excellence Award

The bioinspired soft actuator can change shape under different external magnetic fields. Recorded (top row) and computed (bottom row) deformation of the actuator for contraction during four representative stages.

Researchers design soft actuators that mimic ‘bone-in-flesh’ structure of human limbs

05/28/24 — Devices exhibit ultrafast performance, extreme impact resistance — and can be easily fabricated in under an hour

Bioinspired design reduces drag and noise production for towed sonar arrays

04/01/24 — Textured surface mimics shark skin to make underwater instruments more effective and environmentally friendly

Photo of Augmental co-founder Corten Singer (B.A.’17 CS, B.A.’17 CogSci, M.S.’18 EECS).

Berkeley alum develops tongue-controlled touchpad

01/30/24 — Corten Singer (B.A.’17 CS, B.A.’17 CogSci, M.S.’18 EECS) seeks to create a new paradigm in assistive technologies

With flexibility comes possibility

04/15/22 — Since its opening in 2015, the Jacobs Institute for Design Innovation has provided an interdisciplinary hub for learning — a place where engineers and makers can collaborate at the intersection of design and technology. Thanks to philanthropy and support from the Berkeley Engineering Fund, the institute has grown and enriched its opportunities for hands-on learning. […]