Tianyu Tu is a Master's student in Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University, focusing on robot perception, tactile sensing, and AI for robotics. He is currently working with Professor Mark Cutkosky at the Biomimetics & Dexterous Manipulation Laboratory (BDML) on whisker-inspired tactile sensing for underwater robotics.

His research interests lie in enhancing robot perception through bio-inspired sensors, active vision systems, and learning-based methods. He focuses on enabling robots to extract meaningful insights from limited sensory data and adapt to changing environments—much like how biological systems perceive and respond to their surroundings.

Tianyu received his B.E. in Mechanical Engineering from Shanghai Jiao Tong University as part of the prestigious Tsien Hsue-Shen Honor Program. Born and raised in southern China, he maintains a balance between technical studies and artistic pursuits—he has been a tenor section leader in the university choir and continues to play piano and guitar.

His work has been published at IROS 2025 and he has contributed to multiple research projects in robot perception, active vision systems, and manufacturing processes.