Michal Vavrečka

Developmental Robotics Researcher

Personal Profile

I am a cognitive scientist specializing in developmental robotics, artificial intelligence, and cognitive modeling. Since the beginning of my research in 2005, I have been dedicated to the principles of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). During my psychology studies, I was already creating my own cognitive architectures. I continue this work by testing cognitive architectures in humanoid robots, which I train according to the principles of developmental robotics using reinforcement learning and intrinsic motivation, utilizing advanced robotic simulators that enable the automated creation of long task sequences (lifelong learning). In my research, I connect findings from psychology and neuroscience with technical applications in robotics.

Experience

04/2017 – present Researcher Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics, CTU in Prague

Development of algorithms for humanoid robots and research in human-robot interaction.

10/2022 – 10/2025 Researcher Faculty of Mathematics, Physics and Informatics, CU in Bratislava,

Development of algorithms for humanoid robots (Faculty of Mathematics, Physics and Informatics).

01/2019 – 12/2021 Researcher Institute of Physiology, Academy of Sciences

Advanced EEG signal processing and research in spatial cognition.

04/2016 – 12/2018 Researcher Institute of Computer Science, Academy of Sciences

Advanced EEG signal processing and research in neuroscience.

07/2014 – 12/2015 Researcher EEG department, National Institute of Mental Health, Klecany

Development of algorithms for advanced EEG signal processing and research in sychology.

12/2012 – 06/2015 Postdoc Psychology Department, University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice

Neuropsychological research in the field of emotions and EEG signal processing.

04/2008 – 12/2016 Assistant Professor Faculty of Electrical Engineering, CTU in Prague

Research in spatial cognition, development of algorithms for EEG processing.

Education

2017 Research stay Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Kondo Lab

Japan

2014 Research stay Technical University of Berlin, Dept. of Biopsychology

Germany

2009 Research stay Comenius University Bratislava, Faculty of Mathematics, Physics and Informatics

Slovakia

2005 – 2008 Ph.D., General Psychology Masaryk University, Brno

Dissertation: Application of cognitive semantics in the model of spatial relations representation.

2006 Research stay Comenius University Bratislava, Faculty of Mathematics, Physics and Informatics

Slovakia

1999 – 2005 Mgr. (M.A.), Psychology Masaryk University, Brno

Master’s Thesis: Methods of Human Intelligence Simulation.

Founded Labs

2014

Incognite Lab

We focus on the development of embodied cognitive architectures that are based on an epigenetic robotics principles. We adopt both industrial and humanoid robots to make them learn how to understand the outside world. We develop software for training humanoid robots, such as myGym and PRAG.

2012

Neuropsychological Lab at USB

Open access laboratory equipped with 64-channel EEG and eye-tracker. The laboratory serves for administering experiments in cognitive and affective neuroscience.

2009

EEG Lab at FEE CTU

Research laboratory dedicated to investigating spatial cognition with a particular emphasis on reference frames and neural representations of space. The lab is equipped for EEG-based experiments that study how the human brain processes, integrates, and switches between different spatial reference frames during perception, movement, and interaction with the environment.

Projects

2023-2025

iChores

This European project focuses on investigating the methods that enable a collaborative robot to extract task‑relevant information from the gaze and gestures of a human partner, and how gaze, gesture, and speech information can be combined for a more natural and intuitive interface.

2022-2025

TERAIS

TERAIS (Towards Excellent Robotics and Artificial Intelligence at a Slovak University) is an international project aimed at establishing the Department of Applied Informatics of Comenius University Bratislava. Funded by the Horizon Europe programme under the Twinning call, TERAIS brings together experts from the University of Hamburg in Germany and the Italian Institute of Technology in Genoa to collaborate with scientists at DAI

2021-2024

MIRRACLE

The goal of the project is to design a mapping algorithm that will enable us to create such a multimodal representation of actions that incorporates prior knowledge about the uncertainty of different domains, and show how this can be used to ease teaching robotic actions and generalize them to new embodiments (e.g. different robots, grippers, etc.) and environment.

2019-2021

HUMR

The project focuses on researching the social and technological aspects of the relationship between an elderly human user and the humanoid robot Pepper (human - robot interaction; HRI). The possibilities of using the robot to activate seniors in leisure centers for seniors are being explored.

2019-2021

Tradr

TRADR is an integrated european research project in the area of robot-assisted disaster response. Using a proven-in-practice user-centric design methodology, TRADR develops novel science and technology for human-robot teams to assist in urban search and rescue disaster response efforts, which stretch over multiple sorties in missions that may take several days or weeks.

2014-2017

Robotic Homunculus

Inspired by the biological somatosensory cortex, this project uses the iCub humanoid robot equipped with artificial skin. It investigates how the robot can autonomously learn a representation of its own body surface (a "robotic homunculus") through tactile stimulation and self-organizing maps.

2010-2014

VIREAS

VIREAS software – Virtual Experience Kit – was developed based on a series of tests and studies among residents of a nursing home. The kit includes three virtual experiences: “Walk in the Forest”, “Walk in the City Center” and “Travel”. The interactive design combines computer graphics and 360° photography. The kit is designed to positively influence the self-expression and self-confidence of seniors, motivate them and stimulate their curiosity.

2015-2017

VR Bone Assembly 2.0

VR Bone Assembly 2.0 is an immersive educational software designed for medical students that uses virtual reality to teach human skeletal anatomy through interactive, hands-on learning. The application allows users to assemble and explore bones in a realistic 3D environment, improving spatial understanding and anatomical accuracy while reinforcing theoretical knowledge through practical engagement.

2012-2015

CloPeMa

CloPeMa aims to advance the state of the art in the autonomous perception and manipulation of all kinds of fabrics, textiles and garments. Various garments will be presented in a random pile on an arbitrary background and novel ways of manipulating them (sorting, folding, etc.) will be learned on demand in a real-life dynamic environment.

2012-2016

Ripley Robot

Extension of Ripley robot cognitive architecture from Nikos Mavridis (MIT). A cognitive robotics project utilizing a 7-DOF manipulator with rich sensory capabilities (vision, audio, touch). The research focuses on grounding natural language semantics in perception and action, enabling collaborative tasks through spoken dialogue and interactive learning.

2011-2014

Affective Neuroscience

Neuropsychological research focused on classifying human emotional states using EEG analysis. By presenting affective stimuli (such as IAPS images), the project aims to identify specific neural correlates and feature patterns associated with different emotional responses.

2010-2014

Neurofeedback Software

In this projekct we developed applications for EEG-based neurofeedback that strongly emphasize gamification to enhance user engagement and learning outcomes. By integrating game-like mechanics such as real-time feedback, goals, rewards, and adaptive challenges, the software transforms neural self-regulation tasks into interactive experiences while maintaining rigorous experimental and clinical relevance.

2008-2014

Spatial Cognition

An EEG-based study investigating how the human brain processes spatial information during navigation. The research differentiates between allocentric (world-centered) and egocentric (body-centered) reference frames using data from virtual environment tunnel tasks.

2005-2007

One week continuos stay in VR

The presented paper contains results of pilot study in the area of human computer interaction. The proposed design is based on a subject's stay of several days in purely symbolic (text) visual environment and subsequent analysis of one´s change in production and perception of visual mental images.

2003-present

Symbol Grounding

This fundamental research addresses the symbol grounding problem: how abstract symbols (like words) gain meaning through connection to physical world experiences. The project develops computational models that link linguistic inputs with sensorimotor data from robotic agents.

Software

PRAG

Our generator takes as input user-defined sets of atomic actions, objects, and spatial predicates and outputs solvable tasks of a given length for the selected robotic environment. The generator produces solvable tasks by constraining all possible (nonsolvable) combinations by symbolic and physical validation.

myGym

myGym enables fast prototyping of RL in the area of robotic manipulation and navigation.You can train different robots, in several environments on various tasks. There is automatic evaluation and benchmark tool. From version 2.1 there is support for multi-step tasks, multi-reward training and multi-network architectures.

iChores

We have developed and demonstrated a system that en- ables the TIAGo++ robot to understand and execute complex, sequential commands that combine natural language and multiple pointing gestures. Our approach of decomposing commands and using a probabilistic framework for reasoning has proven to be highly effective in the planning stage.