Vinay Ummadi is a Senior Applied AI Scientist, IIT Kharagpur alumnus, robotics educator, and the founder of MakerWorks Lab, where he is building a thriving maker community in Mumbai around robotics, AI, and open-source hardware. He builds production-grade AI systems while actively exploring the intersection of AI and robotics through Physical AI.

Over the past few years, Vinay has mentored students and engineers in robotics, programming, and embedded systems, with his teams winning awards and representing India at prestigious competitions including NASA Space Apps, World Robot Olympiad (WRO), VEX Robotics, and FIRST Robotics. His current work focuses on building and training open-source robots using platforms such as LeRobot, Reachy Mini, and OpenDuck Mini, making Physical AI more accessible to developers, students, and the broader maker community.

Through MakerWorks Lab, Vinay is passionate about fostering hands-on learning, open-source collaboration, and empowering the next generation of robotics builders.