Christopher Kitts

Dr. Christopher Kitts holds the William and Janice Terry Professorship in Santa Clara University’s School of Engineering. He is the founder and Director of the Robotic Systems Laboratory, an Associate Dean in the School of Engineering, and the Faculty Director of the University’s Ciocca Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Dr. Kitts holds an Associate Researcher appointment at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, in conjunction with whom he and his students develop several advanced marine robotic systems. Dr. Kitts has been the Mission Operations Director for a series of NASA small spacecraft controlled on-orbit by students in the Robotic Systems Laboratory. He also has a visiting researcher appointment at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

At Santa Clara, Prof. Kitts runs an aggressive field robotics program specializing in the design, control and teleoperation of highly capable robotic systems and control technology for scientific discovery, technology validation, and engineering education. These systems include underwater vehicles, clusters of land rovers, autonomous aircraft, and small spacecraft. The development and control of these systems provide unique educational opportunities for students as well as compelling experimental opportunities for demonstrating advanced research capabilities. This program has been funded at a level of tens of millions of dollars and includes sponsors from a variety of government agencies, companies, and foundations. Highlights of the program include robotic-based scientific discoveries, such as evidence of tsunami waves in Lake Tahoe, and unique engineering accomplishments, such as controlling a series of NASA spacecraft for advanced space technology research.

Prof. Kitts’ professional experience includes work in the U.S. Air Force as a satellite constellation mission controller, as a systems engineer and AI researcher working at NASA Ames, as a DoD Research Fellow at the U.S. Phillips Laboratory, as a founder and the Graduate Student Director of Stanford University’s Space Systems Development Laboratory, as a principal in two family-owned businesses, and as a technical consultant. He holds degrees from Princeton University, the University of Colorado, and Stanford University. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and a Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.