Francesco Borrelli

Francesco Borrelli is a Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at UC Berkeley, where he conducts influential research in the theory and application of model predictive control (MPC). He received his Laurea degree from the University of Naples Federico II in 1998 and his Ph.D. from ETH Zurich in 2002. Borrelli’s work spans fundamental advances in constrained control, distributed optimization, and learning-based MPC, as well as real-world applications in autonomous driving, energy systems, large-scale solar power plants, and efficient building control. His contributions have earned major international recognition, including the NSF CAREER Award, the IEEE Control System Technology Award, election as an IEEE Fellow, the IFAC Industrial Achievement Award, and the 2025 Control Practice Award from the American Automatic Control Council. Beyond academia, Borrelli has played a significant leadership role in bringing predictive control into industry. He founded BrightBox Technologies and WideSense Inc., and co-directed the Hyundai Center of Excellence for Integrated Vehicle Safety Systems and Control at UC Berkeley. In 2025, he was appointed Chief AI and Robotics Officer at Nextracker, where he leads global strategy on AI-driven control, robotics, and intelligent solar tracking systems. His research continues to bridge theory and practice, shaping the future of autonomy, robotics, and sustainable energy.