Sam Bateman

Hi, my name is Sam Bateman, and right now, I work on developing technologies in machine learning, robotics, and mapping.

Specifically, I work as a Software Engineer on the Localization and Mapping team at Nuro, an autonomous local delivery startup based out of the Bay Area. In my time here, I have worked and helped lead a variety of projects for both the mapping and the context mapping teams. In addition, I have also collaborated numerous times with the calibration and pose teams to solve problems they encounter. You can check out some impressive outcomes of our team’s amazing work here.


A few years ago, I graduated from the University of Colorado - Boulder with a B.S. in Applied Mathematics and a B.S. in Computer Science. I did my senior thesis work under Dr. Christoffer Heckman in the Autonomous Robotics and Perception Group in the Department of Computer Science, focusing on developing algorithms to enable a dynamic, semantic, Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM). I also worked in the Autonomous Vehicle Systems Laboratory in the Department of Aerospace Engineering on camera simulation and deep learning based optical orbit determination. Along the way, I also had a couple internships, including a summer research internship at MIT Lincoln Labs.


My primary research interests have varied over the years. Originally in undergraduate and my work at Nuro, I primarily studied robotics, machine learning, and the applications of the two to each other and other fields. Specifically, I focused on state estimation, sensor fusion, long-term autonomy, multi-agent localization and mapping, and deep learned perception tasks. Over the last couple years, my interests have slowly shifted more towards certifiable perception, theoretical machine learning (particularly foundations, uncertainty quantification, and guarantees), and applications of machine learning to other fields, particularly other scientific fields (i.e. AI4Science) such as computational chemistry, computational physics, and proof synthesis. In general, I also am known to be easily drawn into any interesting problem which can leverage my passions for math and learning about the natural world. Feel free to check out some of my previous projects to get a sampling.


In my free time, I like reading, playing video games (specifically Street Fighter 6 right now), running games of D&D, and spending time with friends and family.

Feel free to contact me at sam@bateman.io if you have any questions or inquiries.