Naoki Shitanda
Ph.D. student · The University of Tokyo
Reinforcement learning & robotics
Hi! I am a Ph.D. student in the Graduate School of Information Science and Technology at The University of Tokyo. I am affiliated with the Machine Intelligence Lab and the RIKEN AIP Robot Learning Team, and am supervised by Prof. Tatsuya Harada and Dr. Takayuki Osa.
I am particularly interested in scalable reinforcement learning algorithms for large-scale parallel environments and in dexterous manipulation. Related work was accepted to ICLR 2026 .
In summer 2025, I had a great opportunity to work on a dexterous manipulation project in Soft Robotics Lab at ETH Zurich. I received my M.S. from The University of Tokyo and my B.Eng. from Kyoto University. Since 2021, I have also been working as a Research Assistant at Sony CSL - Kyoto under Prof. Jun Rekimoto.
Recent news
- 2026-06-10: Our research was featured in the July 2026 issue of Nikkei Robotics.
- 2026-06-04: Certified as an IPA MITOU Super Creator.
- 2026-04-21: Co-first-authored work was accepted to SIGGRAPH 2026 Emerging Technologies.
- 2026-04-01: I received my M.S. degree and entered the Ph.D. program with the BOOST NAIS fellowship.
- 2026-01-26: First-author paper accepted to ICLR 2026.
Selected publications
Full list →
Katakko: Embodiment of Modular Robots through Automatic Motion Mapping
SIGGRAPH 2026 · Emerging Technologies
* Equal contribution
Education
The University of Tokyo
Ph.D. student, Mechano-Informatics
M.S., Information Science and Technology, 2024–2026
Research Visits
University of Bristol
Exchange student & visiting researcher
Bristol Robotics Laboratory · Jonathan Rossiter
Industry Experience (Internships)
Sony Computer Science Laboratories, Inc.
Research assistant under Deputy Director Jun Rekimoto (Kyoto): (1) data collection support systems for 3D reconstruction (2025-), (2) in-the-wild 3D reconstruction (2023-2024), (3) interactive architectural elements with variable transparency (2022-2023)
Sony Group Corporation
Long-term paid internship, Robot Learning
FingerVision Inc.
Contract development of a computer vision system for automatic dish identification and dishwashing robots
Preferred Networks, Inc.
Part-time engineer (robot learning)
Muscle Corporation
Part-time engineer; developed a low-cost mannequin robot for fashion displays. Adopted in the "Hiroko Koshino Exhibition" at Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art from April 2022.
Other activities
- MITOU Program for Innovative IT Human Resources (FY2025)2025.06 – 2026.03
Project: development platform for modular social robots for self-expression, with Sotaro Yokoi, Naoki Shitanda, and Kento Matsuo. Acceptance rate: 9.3%. Certified as an IPA MITOU Super Creator.
Awards
- IPA MITOU Super Creator [Link] A distinction awarded by Japan's government-affiliated Information-technology Promotion Agency (IPA) to outstanding software innovators.2026.06
- Maker Faire Tokyo Young Maker Challenge Sponsor Award (SLB Award) [Link]2025.10
- Completed the Kyoto University International Education Program2024.03
- Techno-Ai 2022 Encouragement Award and Fighting Spirit Award (University Division) [Link]2022.11
- Techno-Ai 2021 Excellence Award and Encouragement Award (University Division) [Link]2021.11
Media
- RIKEN Develops Highly Efficient Reinforcement Learning Technology for Sim-to-Real, Effective on Hard Problems Existing Methods Cannot Solve [Link]Nikkei Robotics, July 2026 issue. Japanese article; title translated.2026-06-10
Research Funding
- BOOST NAIS: Next-generation AI for Intelligent Society FY2026–FY2028, Research funding: JPY 540,000/year
- GCL FY2025 Independent Research and Activity Grant, Category B FY2025, JPY 500,000
Scholarships
- BOOST NAIS: Next-generation AI for Intelligent Society FY2026–FY2028, Fellowship
- Teijin Scholarship Foundation FY2026-FY2028
- Tobitate! Study Abroad Initiative: Japan Representative Program FY2026
Show all scholarships (9 more)Show less
- WINGS-IIW, The University of Tokyo (International Graduate Program for Intelligent Society) 2024 April ~ 2026 March (2029 March), Fellowship
- Hayashi Rheology Memorial Foundation 2024 April ~ 2026 March (Completed)
- Okuyama Scholarship Foundation 2022 September ~ 2024 March (Completed)
- Leave a Nest Scholarship, Osaka Seminar FY2023 (Completed)
- JASSO Overseas Study Support Program (Exchange Dispatch) 2022 September ~ 2023 May
- Kyoto University International Education Program 2022 ~ 2024 (Completed)
- Kyoto University Study Abroad Grant 2022 (Declined / Returned)
- Okura Mutual Aid Association: Support for Students Studying Abroad 2022 (Completed)
- KEYENCE Foundation "Go for it! Japanese University Students" Support Grant 2022 (Completed)