Coffee and Control

01:00:47

Keyan Miao (Interfacing Control with Neural ODEs)

Coffee and Control ·

2026/10/01

In this episode I got to chat with the incredibly wonderful Dr Keyan Miao about the fascinating work she’s done on neural ODEs. We discuss applying control theoretic tools to optimise neural ODEs, as well as their use for both controller and observer design. And in case that wasn’t already enough we also touch on dissipativity, Koopman operators, and reinforcement learning! You can find the transcript for this episode at:

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01:05:26

IFAC World Congress Special

Coffee and Control ·

2026/09/01

In this episode I take you with me to the 2026 IFAC World Congress in Busan, South Korea, where I got to talk to a bunch of wonderful control researchers about their work. We cover a wide range of fascinating research areas, including observer design for transportation, event-triggered control, consensus control, extremum-seeking, robotic manipulation, control education and outreach, and a whole lot more! You can find the transcript for this episode at:

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00:59:42

Francesca Boem (Distributed Monitoring and Attack...

Coffee and Control ·

2026/08/01

In this episode I had the pleasure of talking to the fantastic Francesca Boem about her work on monitoring networked systems, approaches to detecting faults and cyber attacks, as well as her new start-up helping to ensure the security of wireless health-tech devices! You can find the transcript for this episode at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Ttf7raapfDW4_aj3mnD8mSoy704d9T9BLnJk9QXbLqM/edit?usp=sharing Follow the podcast on LinkedIn:

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00:50:30

CONTROL 2026 (ACE Network/ UKACC Conference Special)

Coffee and Control ·

2026/07/01

In this episode I have the pleasure of attending the CONTROL2026 conference, and bring you along with me! This conference was the largest gatheringof control engineers in the UK recent years, co-organized by the ACE network and UK Automatic Control Council (UKACC). Join me as I explore the ACE network and some of the fabulous control engineering research taking place across theUK!Join the ACE network!: ⁠https://ukcontrol.org/join-ace You can find the transcript for this episode at:

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00:52:03

Carmen Amo Alonso: Part 2 (AI Architectures and the...

Coffee and Control ·

2026/06/07

In the second part of my interview with the incredibly talented Carmen Amo Alonso we discuss her fascinating work at the intersection of AI and control, examining topics such as:Using tools from control theory to analyse and design AI systemsControlling large language models to guarantee a particular sentiment for their outputUsing vision-language-action models to control robots using languageand a whole lot more! You can find the transcript for this episode at:

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00:30:23

Carmen Amo Alonso: Part 1 (Distributed and Localized...

Coffee and Control ·

2026/06/02

In this episode I talk to the very wonderful Carmen Amo Alonso about her (award-winning) PhD research on distributed and localised MPC. We also cover super interesting and useful concepts such as system-level synthesis and ADMM, as well as her internship working at Tesla!You can access the transcript at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SErvHtKoE18QzelHDUh9im6AeG3zKPWZLRoNGx5BUyg/edit?usp=sharingFollow the podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/coffee-and-control-podcast/Or connect

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00:34:14

Journal Clubs (Creating reading groups that people...

Coffee and Control ·

2026/05/01

In this episode I talk to three lovely researchers all about journal clubs (AKA reading groups) – what they are, why you might want to be part of one, and how to start your own! I also give some insights from my own experiences running a (control-related) journal club, as well as a summary of three of my favourite papers we’ve read. You can find the transcript at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/19i4egf_2KEWqkp94ZW3QjRTH8PeAZz6yEix8zoSfx4k/edit?usp=sharingFollow the podcast on LinkedIn:

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00:58:30

Brian Douglas (Control Engineering in Industry)

Coffee and Control ·

2026/04/01

In this episode I got the opportunity to sit down with the fantastic Brian Douglas and talk about what it's like to be a control engineer in industry, common misconceptions he had, and advice for current students. We also discussed his YouTube channel, as well as a few more technical aspects of projects he's been involved with over the years!You can find the transcript at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1gAyIAgd3RzVSSDmJ-As0gzJVekJG3IqU2L-1zJhuKYs/edit?usp=sharingFollow the podcast on

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01:09:55

Gioele Zardini (Engineering Trade-offs and Co-design)

Coffee and Control ·

2026/03/01

In this episode I got to speak with the fantastic Gioele Zardini about his work on the co-design framework, a fascinating framework used to optimise large interconnected systems. We cover the theoretical background of this, intuition behind it, and a ton of different applications where it’s useful, as well as discussing exciting open questions in the field! Find the transcript at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XPZr9jP4Lphskkw-SiM8h-x1kp7LROqZ243S6zA7EsY/edit?usp=sharingFollow the podcast on

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00:54:31

Barbara Franci (Game Theory and Resource Allocation)

Coffee and Control ·

2026/02/01

In this episode I have a lovely conversation with Dr BarbaraFranci about her research into game theory, exploring both theoretical concepts (such as variational inequalities, forwards-backwards algorithms, and stochasticNash equilibrium-seeking problems) and practical applications, including resource allocation, energy management, and generative adversarial networks! You can find the transcript at:

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00:25:31

Meet the Faculty Candidates (Fascinating research...

Coffee and Control ·

2026/01/09

In this bonus episode I explore the work of ten fascinatingresearchers that I met at the Meet the Faculty Candidates poster session at CDC last month. We cover a wide array of different areas, including data-driven methods, fault-tolerant control, biological systems, PDEs, distributed estimationand a whole lot more! You can view the transcript for this episode at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/15Tf4ORHPI5Thbs-nA9DQTSu87TKbYni9JJN2UXqn5kU/edit?usp=sharingFollow the podcast on LinkedIn:

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00:51:08

CDC special (Conference of Decision and Control 2025)

Coffee and Control ·

2026/01/01

In this episode I bring my microphones with me to the conference of decision and control (CDC) where I talk to a load of interesting researchers about their recent work. Featuring discussion of a wide range of different topics, including reinforcement learning, control architecture, game theory, AI-human interaction, event-triggered control and a whole lot more! You can view the episode transcript at:

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00:18:26

IEEE NextCom (Fostering Community Within Controls...

Coffee and Control ·

2025/12/27

In this episode I talk to some wonderful members of IEEEcontrol systems society (CSS) NextCom committee about their work fostering inclusivity and belonging within CSS, as well as empowering the next generation of leaders within control. We also cover how you can be a part of this! You can find the transcript at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/186arBxVLdcpHUCT9djgXQ7IMVvX5SLsMk0LmnzOLbRY/edit?usp=sharing Fill in this leadership interest survey if you’d like to getinvolved:

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00:57:59

Sophie Schirmer (Quantum Control 2: Controllability...

Coffee and Control ·

2025/12/01

This month I got to interview Sophie Schirmer about herfascinating work on quantum control, including notions such as controllability and realisability, different types of quantum states (including pure, mixed, and dark states), comparison between different approaches to optimisation, and the quantum phenomena inside MRI scanners! You can find the transcript at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1l0TFtckp7zEKCG0wdMHY0nySptrzbkV9ohQExa6ykGg/edit?usp=sharingFollow the podcast on LinkedIn:

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01:09:51

Carrie Weidner (Quantum Control 1: Optimisation and...

Coffee and Control ·

2025/11/01

In this month’s episode got to talk to Dr Carrie Weidner allabout controlling quantum systems! I find out what the control objective is forthese systems, how to characterise their robustness (or at least attempt to),how easy it is to apply this to practical systems, and a lot more besides.You can find the transcript at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1aixaD-P6R6jFDjS4Zp6nJ2n5ZHPfbWKYCue2v2_ZCVU/edit?usp=sharing Follow the podcast on LinkedIn:

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00:52:45

Andy Lawrence (EPSRC grant funding)

Coffee and Control ·

2025/10/09

In this episode I sit down with Dr Andy Lawrence and learn all about the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), including his top tips on successful grant applications, advice for not getting discouraged by rejected submissions, how to build successful collaborations with industry, and a lot more besides! You can find the transcript for this episode at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1FxscV2YjbfeI_u26ETkA25hMwGVmJojHdV5zj7J7wyE/edit?usp=sharingFollow the podcast on LinkedIn:

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00:53:40

Alberto Padoan: Part 2 (Distances between behaviours...

Coffee and Control ·

2025/10/01

This episode features the second part of my interview with the fantastic Alberto Padoan! Featuring discussions of data-driven modelling in a geometric/ non-linear context, how to define distances in a behavioural systems setting, and the origin story of his podcast, inControl.You can find the transcript at: https://CoffeeControlLinks.short.gy/y67vmp Follow the podcast on linkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/coffee-and-control-podcastOr connect with me personally:

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01:00:18

Alberto Padoan: Part 1 (Moments of Systems and Model...

Coffee and Control ·

2025/09/01

In this episode I sit down with the wonderful Alberto Padoan and discuss his work on model order reduction and generalising concepts from linear systems to the non-linear setting.You can find the transcript at: https://CoffeeControlLinks.short.gy/IRMql9Follow the podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/coffee-and-control-podcast/Or connect with me directly: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucy-hodgins-733a30175/ReferencesinControl podcast: https://www.incontrolpodcast.com/ Andrea Marson:

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01:00:05

Ying Shuai Quan (Model Predictive Control and...

Coffee and Control ·

2025/08/01

In this episode I sit down with Dr Ying Shuai Quan and getexcited about her work on adaptive cruise control and lane-keeping systems, with particular focus on applying model predictive control. Features deep-dives into various aspects of MPC, with occasional offshoots into other cool areas of control! You can find the transcript for this episode at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ufp57VuzymcEivN3lzMaHVKgH8LgqI9BZDzgmdz2pug/edit?usp=sharingFollow the podcast on LinkedIn:

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00:56:09

ECC Special (European Control Conference 2025)

Coffee and Control ·

2025/07/01

This episode is an ECC special, where I go on a trip to theEuropean control conference and bring you with me!Connect with me and with the podcastLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucy-hodgins-733a30175/X: https://x.com/coffee_ctrl_podBluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/coffee-and-control.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/coffee_and_control_podcast/ References (Cool people to go look up!)ECC25 web page: https://ecc25.euca-ecc.org/Guido Carnevale:

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