Voices from SPECTRO: GIM Robotics brings industry expertise to European robotics Education

GIM Robotics stands out as the only robotics company among SPECTRO's prestigious group of university partners. Their involvement came through their close ties with Aalto University (also a SPECTRO’s partner), where the company's story began.

GIM Robotics emerged from the Automation Technology Laboratory founded in 1985 by the late Professor Aarne Halme at Helsinki University of Technology (now part of Aalto University). Over more than two decades, this laboratory evolved into one of the world's leading autonomous mobile robotics research centers, developing remarkable innovations like the 1-ton walking machine Mecant, the centauroid Workpartner robot, and one of the earliest ball-shaped mobile robots, Rollo.

The company's academic journey reached a significant milestone when they formed the Centre of Excellence (CoE-GIM) with Tampere University's Institute of Hydraulics and Automation. The acronym GIM—standing for Generic Intelligent Machines—reflected their philosophy of developing versatile technology applicable across industries. When their CoE funding ended in 2013, GIM Robotics was founded in 2014, taking this vision into the commercial sector.

"Being asked to join a prestigious group of universities as the only robotics company was a real honour to all of us in GIM Robotics," says Dr. Mika Vainio, Chief Marketing Officer at GIM Robotics. "Now we have a chance to transfer our knowledge to the next generation of robotics engineers. We owe that to them."

Today, GIM Robotics employs 40 world-class engineers, including 9 mobile robotics PhDs from across the globe. Their expertise spans multiple sectors including intralogistics, agriculture, forestry, marine, mining, environmental maintenance, railways, ports, and defense. The company specializes in sensor fusion, real-time 3D localization and mapping, traversability analysis, computer vision systems, and dynamic object tracking—delivering software that makes mobile machines and robots safer, more precise, and more efficient, even in challenging environments.

GIM Robotics' commitment to education predates their involvement with SPECTRO. The company previously participated in MORE, an innovative European Industrial Doctorate research and training program funded by the EU's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant. They regularly lecture at universities in Finland and beyond, have supervised more than 20 Master's theses in collaboration with Aalto University, and currently support three team members pursuing doctoral studies at Aalto.

This unique position - with over a decade of real-world business experience built upon an extensive academic foundation - enables GIM to make a distinctive contribution to SPECTRO's mission of equipping future robotics engineers with essential skills.

Within the SPECTRO consortium, GIM Robotics is helping shape the curriculum for the Robotics master's programme, collaborating with Aalto University on course development and supporting student internships. One of their key contributions is creating a self-standing module focused on navigation technologies, which will be part of the specialized robotics certifications offered through the programme.

"Our long academic journey followed with more than 10 years of real-world business experience gives us a unique opportunity to contribute to the main objectives of SPECTRO," explains Dr. Vainio. "Not only do we know how to teach future robotics engineers, but we also know what they should be taught to give them tools to excel in post-university time."

For GIM Robotics, the collaboration with leading European universities through SPECTRO offers valuable insights into cutting-edge research that can enhance their industry applications. For SPECTRO, GIM brings practical industry perspective that ensures the educational programmes remain aligned with real-world needs.

The double-degree master's programme being developed through this initiative will ensure graduates possess both the theoretical knowledge and practical skills needed to excel in the rapidly evolving robotics industry. This collaborative approach to education strengthens Europe's position as a leader in intelligent mobile robotics while addressing the growing skills gap in this critical sector.

As Dr. Vainio succinctly puts it: "Win-win, as a consultant would say."

Through partnerships like these - bringing together academia, industry, and research institutions - SPECTRO is building the foundation for a secure, digitalized European economy where the next generation of robotics engineers can create tomorrow's technological breakthroughs.