Prof Mary He
Post Nominals | BEng, MSc, PhD, FHEA, SIEEE |
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Biography | Professor Hongmei (Mary) He (FHEA, SIEEE) is Chair Professor of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Robotics and Autonomous Systems at the School of Science, Engineering, and Environment, University of Salford, Manchester, UK. She serves as the Salford Turing Liaison Academic Lead within the Turing University Network and is a member of the EPSRC Peer Review College. She has also contributed to the EU Horizontal Robotics Research & Innovation Programme as a panel expert. Professor He earned her PhD in Computer Science from Loughborough University in 2006, where she developed a strong foundation in optimisation. Since then, her research has focused on applied AI across a range of domains at institutions including the University of Bristol, Ulster University, University of Kent, Cranfield University, and De Montfort University. Prior to her academic career in the UK, she worked as a senior embedded systems engineer at the Motorola Design House in China. Her research is supported by major funding bodies including EPSRC, Innovate UK, the EU, the Ministry of Defence, and industry partners. She currently leads pioneering research in human-centred AI for trustworthy robotics and autonomous systems (RAS), with applications in healthcare, critical national infrastructure, and sustainable living environments. Her work addresses global challenges by developing intelligent, safe, and ethically aligned systems that enhance human health, wellbeing, and quality of life. Professor He’s research bridges theoretical AI and real-world impact, integrating explainable AI, sensor-driven intelligence, human–machine interaction, and system resilience to ensure autonomous systems are trustworthy, interpretable, and usable in complex, dynamic settings. In healthcare, she is advancing AI-powered robotic assistants and decision support tools to help vulnerable populations, such as older adults and individuals with cognitive impairments. For national infrastructure, her work contributes to secure, reliable AI systems for smart environments and digital health platforms. Deeply committed to ensuring AI technologies address societal needs, Professor He leads interdisciplinary research aimed at creating transparent, inclusive, and value-driven solutions. Her work aligns with global priorities, including the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)—notably SDG 3: Good Health and Wellbeing and SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities—and supports the responsible adoption of AI for healthier, safer, and more equitable societies. She is the Chair of the IEEE UK & Ireland Robotics and Automation Society Chapter, a member of the IEEE RAS Cognitive Robotics Technical Committee, and Chair of the AI and Edge Computing for Trustworthy RAS Task Force within the Adaptive Dynamic Programming and Reinforcement Learning Technical Committee (ADPRLTC) of the IEEE Computational Intelligence Society. |
Research Interests | Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning (e.g., Neural Networks, Linguistic Decision Making, Support Vector Machine, Bayes Classifier, etc), Transparency and Interpretability of AI and Evolutionary Algorithms. Trustworthy Robotics and Autonomous Systems with respect to Safety, Security, System Health, Human-Robotics Interaction and Ethical Decision Making. Cognitive Cybersecurity and Cognitive Robotics System Performance and Resource Optimisation Application domains: Healthcare, Transport and National Infrastructure |
Teaching and Learning | Articial Intelligence, MSc, module lead Mobile Robotics, MSc, module lead MSc dissertation coordination for four programmes |
Scopus Author ID | 55214926700 |
PhD Supervision Availability | Yes |
PhD Topics | Machine Learning for Health Data Analysis Emotion Analysis and Pattern Recognition Trusted Human-Robot Interaction Cognitive Cybersecurity Cognitive Robotics Homecare robotics AI and Robotics Ecosystems |
Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation
Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts
Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development