Most Promising Researcher in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence
The call for entries for the fourth edition of the Most Promising Researcher in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence award is now online. The award is promoted on the occasion of the 19th edition of the RomeCup (28-30 April 2026) by the Fondazione Mondo Digitale ETS and Corriere della Sera in collaboration with Sapienza University of Rome and Campus Bio-Medico University of Rome.
The award is dedicated to young researchers and doctoral students engaged in research projects in the fields of robotics and artificial intelligence, with the aim of promoting talent capable of combining technological innovation, scientific impact and social benefits.
Alongside the main category of the award, the fourth edition adds the Cyber Humanities Award - Tullio De Mauro, an award dedicated to research exploring the relationship between language, algorithmic infrastructures, knowledge and ethics. This expansion reflects the interdisciplinary nature of the RomeCup and its openness to Digital Humanities as a space of convergence between the hard sciences and the humanities.
The award is presented by a jury of experts chaired by Paolo Dario, professor emeritus at the Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna in Pisa, one of the world's most authoritative voices in the field of robotics.
The award ceremony takes place in the Sala Esedra of the Capitoline Museums, dominated by the equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius, which gives the evening a unique symbolic value: under the gaze of the emperor-philosopher, leader of a government founded on wisdom, responsibility and balance, the award ceremony celebrates a generation of scientists called upon to guide the future of innovation with ethics and awareness.
The award, which in previous editions has highlighted cutting-edge research, has already recognised projects of great practical value.
In 2023, the winner was Marta Lagomarsino, with a project on bio-cooperative robotics (CoBots) to improve the quality and safety of working life [see the news item Marta Lagomarsino wins RomeCup Award 2023].
In 2024, the award went to Mihai Drăgușanu, creator of an advanced robotic suit for rehabilitation, capable of integrating biomechanics and artificial intelligence for motor recovery [see the news item Mihai's “gold suit”].
In 2025, the winner was Clemente Lauretti, a researcher at the Campus Bio-Medico University of Rome, with one of the most promising projects in the field of medical robotics, dedicated to robot-assisted spinal surgery and the development of an intelligent platform to support surgeons in real time [see the news item Precision surgery].
Applications for the 2026 edition are now open: all information and the complete call for applications are available on the Fondazione Mondo Digitale website, in the calls for applications section, and on the web space dedicated to the multi-event RomeCup 2026.
