ICRA 2024 – IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation
- Date
- 2024-05-13
- Location
- Yokohama, Japan
- Host
- IEEE Robotics and Automation Society (RAS)
About this event
ICRA 2024 brings the global robotics community to Yokohama for one of the field’s most important annual gatherings. If your work sits anywhere near robot systems, automation, embodied AI, controls, perception, manipulation, or real-world deployment, this is the kind of conference where new ideas, serious technical conversations, and long-term collaborations all happen in the same room. As the flagship conference of IEEE Robotics and Automation Society, ICRA has long been a reference point for where robotics is heading next. The 2024 edition in Japan places attendees in the middle of a truly international exchange: researchers, engineers, students, founders, and industry teams all showing what they are building, debating what matters, and learning from one another face to face. About the Event ICRA 2024 is an in-person international conference focused on robotics and automation, hosted in Yokohama, Japan. It continues the conference’s long-standing role as a central meeting point for the people shaping the field, from foundational research through applied systems and practical deployment. This is not a single-track meetup or a narrow technical workshop. It is a large-scale conference environment designed for breadth and depth: formal presentations, technical discussions, community encounters, and the kind of chance conversations that often lead to future papers, projects, recruiting, or partnerships. The event draws a broad cross-section of the robotics ecosystem, including: Academic researchers and faculty Graduate students and early-career roboticists Industry engineers and R&D teams Startup builders and product leaders People working across hardware, software, autonomy, and automation Because the audience spans both research and industry, the event is especially valuable for anyone who wants to understand not only the latest technical work, but also how ideas are moving from lab settings into robust systems and real applications. What to Expect Expect a conference experience built around technical exchange, discovery, and in-person networking. ICRA is known for bringing together a high volume of current work across robotics, which means attendees can move between topics, compare approaches, and get a clearer view of emerging directions across the field. While exact session details vary across the conference program, attendees typically come to ICRA for a mix of experiences such as: Research paper presentations and technical sessions Conversations around current challenges in robotics and automation Community networking across academia and industry Exposure to new systems, methods, and applications Informal discussions that continue beyond scheduled programming One of the strongest parts of an event like this is the density of expertise in the room. You are not only hearing polished talks; you are also meeting the people behind the work, asking sharper questions, and getting context that is often impossible to capture in a paper alone. The in-person setting matters. Robotics is a deeply interdisciplinary field, and many of the most useful conversations happen when people from different specialties compare assumptions and constraints directly. A perception researcher may meet a manipulation engineer, a controls expert may connect with a startup team, and a student may discover a future lab, mentor, or employer through a single well-timed conversation. Why Attend If you want a serious snapshot of the current robotics landscape, ICRA is one of the clearest places to get it. Rather than following developments piece by piece online, you can see a concentrated cross-section of the field in one setting and better understand how technical priorities are evolving. For researchers, the value is straightforward: learn what peers are working on, pressure-test your own thinking, and identify new directions worth pursuing. For industry attendees, the conference offers a practical way to track relevant advances, meet potential collaborators, and understand where research momentum may influence future products or capabilities. Attending can be especially useful if you are looking to: Stay current on robotics and automation research Meet others working in adjacent or complementary areas Build relationships across labs, companies, and institutions Discover collaboration, recruiting, or career opportunities Broaden your understanding of how different subfields connect There is also real value in the conference’s international character. Robotics advances through shared methods, benchmarked progress, and cross-border collaboration, and events like ICRA make that exchange tangible. Being in the room helps you understand not just what is being built, but how different communities are thinking about the same problems. Practical Details Location: In person in Yokohama, Japan Start time: Monday, May 13 at 12:00 AM UTC This is an in-person event, so attendees should plan around travel, local transportation, and conference-day logistics in Yokohama. If you are attending from outside Japan, it is worth confirming time zone differences and building in enough buffer for arrival, check-in, and navigating the venue area comfortably. Because conferences like ICRA bring together a large and active professional audience, it helps to arrive with a plan. Consider the topics, people, or types of conversations you most want to prioritize. A little preparation can make the event significantly more useful, especially if your goals include networking, technical discovery, or identifying future collaborators. A few simple ways to get more from the experience: Review the conference schedule in advance once available Note the sessions most relevant to your work or interests Leave time for informal conversations between sessions Be ready to introduce your work clearly and briefly Follow up with people you meet while the context is still fresh Whether you are deeply embedded in robotics or looking to connect more seriously with the community, ICRA 2024 offers a strong reason to be in the room. It is a place to learn, compare ideas, meet the people driving the field forward, and come away with a sharper sense of where robotics and automation are heading next.
Who should attend
If you care about where robotics is going next—and want to learn directly from the people building it—this conference is built for you. - **You’re a robotics researcher or academic** working in areas like perception, manipulation, motion planning, control, human-robot interaction, or multi-robot systems, and you want to engage with the latest technical work at one of the field’s central gatherings. - **You’re an engineer or practitioner in industry** building autonomous systems, robotic platforms, or real-world automation tools, and you want exposure to new methods, emerging directions, and practical ideas you can bring back to your team. - **You’re a PhD student, postdoc, or graduate student** looking to deepen your technical perspective, get a clearer view of the research landscape, and meet the broader robotics community in person. - **You work on autonomous robotics** and want to connect your specialization to the wider ecosystem of robotics and automation, from foundational research to deployment challenges. - **You value being in the room with the international robotics community**—meeting collaborators, exchanging ideas, and seeing how the field is evolving across academia and industry. - **You’re deciding what to work on next** and want a high-signal view of current priorities, open problems, and the people shaping the future of robotics.