About NERC

NERC 2026 will be hosted in Commons Library at Princeton University on October 3, 2026. The program includes keynote talks from distinguished leaders, a Rising Stars oral presentation session, and vibrant poster sessions for students and researchers. Registration is open to the entire robotics community — see the registration details below.

Registration

NERC 2026 is open to researchers, students, and industry professionals. Registration is handled through Eventbrite.

Registration Type	Rate
Student (including postdocs)	$50
Academic	$75
Industry	$100

Tickets are refundable up to 7 days before the event. NERC 2026 is an in-person, full-day program (8:00 AM – 5:00 PM ET) at Princeton University.

Questions? Contact us at nerc2026@princeton.edu.

Add NERC 2026 to your calendar (.ics)

Call for Participation

Rising Stars & Oral Talks

We invite PhD students and postdocs to apply for our Rising Stars session. This is a prestigious opportunity to orally present your research to the entire colloquium.

Applicants should submit an abstract (see format below), a video presentation summarizing their work (up to 2 minutes), and a curriculum vitae. Selected researchers will be invited to give a short spotlight talk during the colloquium.

Posters & Demos

Present your latest work during our interactive poster sessions. We welcome abstracts describing recently published work, preliminary results, ongoing research, and demonstrations. Accepted abstracts will be presented as posters.

Abstract Format and Submission

Abstracts for both tracks should be submitted in plain text (no PDF). Abstracts may be at most 5000 characters and should aim for 2–3 paragraphs. An abstract should describe the work, its significance, and what will be presented at the colloquium. If the work has been previously published, the abstract should say so and name the venue.

Submissions are handled through OpenReview. If you do not already have an OpenReview account, create one well before the deadline; new profiles can take time to be activated.

The submission deadline for both tracks, including all materials, is Thursday, August 20, 2026, 5:00 PM ET. Decision and travel funding dates are listed under Key Dates.

Submit on OpenReview

Key Dates

Date	Event	Details
Thu, Aug 20	Rising Stars Submissions	Submit abstracts and short video via OpenReview by 5:00 PM ET.
Thu, Aug 20	General Poster Abstracts	Submit general abstracts via OpenReview by 5:00 PM ET.
Thu, Aug 20	Travel Funding Applications	Apply for student/postdoc travel support via Eventbrite.
Mon, Sep 7	Rising Stars Decisions	Acceptance notifications emailed to oral presenter applicants.
Mon, Sep 7	Poster Decisions	Acceptance decisions for general poster session emailed.
Mon, Sep 7	Travel Funding Decisions	Notifications of travel grant awards and support emailed.
Sat, Oct 3	Colloquium Day!	Full-day colloquium event held at Princeton University.

Invited Speakers & Panelists

Our program aims to cover a diverse range of robotics specialties. We feature speakers from both academia and industry, with a special focus on recruiting distinguished voices from institutions across the Northeast and beyond.

Kirstin H. Petersen

Associate Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering

Cornell University

Zhengbo Zou

Assistant Professor, Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics

Columbia University

Alberto Rodriguez

Director, Robot Behavior — Atlas

Boston Dynamics

Schedule

Tentative Schedule for Saturday, October 3, 2026. Details subject to change.

Time	Event
8:00 AM	Registration & Breakfast
8:50 AM	Opening Remarks Featuring Princeton Robotics Lab videos
9:00 AM	Rising Stars Talks
9:15 AM	Invited Speaker I 40 min talk + 5 min Q&A
10:00 AM	Poster Session A & Coffee Break (1.5 hr)
11:30 AM	Rising Stars Talks
11:45 AM	Invited Speaker II 40 min talk + 5 min Q&A
12:30 PM	Lunch
1:30 PM	Rising Stars Talks
1:45 PM	Invited Speaker III 40 min talk + 5 min Q&A
2:30 PM	Poster Session B & Coffee Break (1.5 hr)
4:00 PM	Rising Stars Talks
4:15 PM	Faculty & Industry Panel: Career Advice 40 min + 5 min Q&A
5:00 PM	Closing Remarks & Awards Awards, Princeton Lab videos, and NERC 2027 announcement
5:30 PM	Clean-up & Happy/Social Hour

Travel & Logistics

Venue

Princeton University
Commons Library
11 Ivy Lane
Princeton, NJ 08540

The main events (keynotes, oral sessions, panels) will be held in Commons Library, part of Princeton's new engineering neighborhood on Ivy Lane, across from Princeton Stadium.

Getting Here

By Train: The "Dinky" train connects Princeton Station (on campus) to Princeton Junction (NJ Transit Northeast Corridor). Commons Library is about a 15-minute walk from Princeton Station.

By Plane: Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) is approx. 1 hour away by car or train.

Accommodation

Here are several recommended hotel options near campus (note: there are no reserved room blocks for the event):

Nassau Inn [~20-minute walk to Commons]
Graduate Princeton [~20-minute walk to Commons]
The Peacock Inn [~25-minute walk, or ~5-minute Uber/drive]
Hyatt Regency Princeton [~5-10 minute Uber/drive, 2.5 miles]
Residence Inn Princeton [~7-10 minute Uber/drive, 3.0 miles]
Hyatt Place Princeton [~8-12 minute Uber/drive, 3.5 miles]

Travel Support

A limited number of travel grants are available to help cover lodging and transportation costs. Applications are open to students and postdocs from institutions across the Northeast who are participating or presenting at the colloquium.

To be considered for a travel grant, register on Eventbrite by Thursday, August 20, 2026.

If a travel grant affects whether you are able to attend, note that Eventbrite provides refunds up to 7 days before the event, and we will announce awards well before then (by Monday, September 7, 2026).

Accessibility

To request disability-related accommodations (such as sign language interpretation or captioning), please email nerc2026@princeton.edu at least one week in advance of the event. Detailed access guides for Princeton campus buildings, including entrances, elevators, and restrooms, are available from Princeton's Accessibility Guides.