Electrical & Computer Engineering

Intelligent Systems and Automation

We employ novel applications of machine learning and artificial intelligence to address our strategic research efforts.

The new reality of artificial intelligence crosses almost all of our work. From automation and connected systems to novel medical sensors, these pervasive, emerging technologies will likely advance each of our research impacts. Increasing realization of human-machine teaming will result in robust human/cyber/physical systems networks. Our ability to excel in all areas will rely on advances in this rapidly evolving technology base.

Agriculture Goes Digital

The UC Davis Digital Agriculture Laboratory sits at the intersection of agriculture and digital technology. Led by biological and agricultural engineering assistant professor Alireza Pourreza, the lab works directly with growers to develop and deploy technology that gives them the information they need to better understand their plants and navigate our changing climate.

One of the lab’s most beneficial projects is helping growers predict how much their crops will produce, which is largely determined by how well each plant receives and absorbs sunlight.

Orchard under lighting

Research in Action

A hand outstretched with a blue projection of Earth and networks artistically drawn on top of the blue image

How Autocrats Control Internet Traffic Out of Sight

Authoritarian regimes exert control over the internet through transit networks that operate largely out of public view, according to a recent study by researchers in the U.S. and Germany. The work, published in PNAS Nexus, also shows how more sophisticated authoritarian regimes extend their influence by providing network access in poorer but politically similar countries.

Graph showing different platforms and AI bias

A Solution for AI’s Bias Problem

As artificial intelligence gains momentum, University of California researchers are identifying discrimination in the algorithms that are shaping our society, devising solutions, and helping build a future where computers do us less harm and more good. 

Paper with color bars and coffee beans behind a phone taking a photo

App for Coffee Quality Assurance Engineered at UC Davis

Researchers at the UC Davis Coffee Center in the College of Engineering, through a partnership with cloud service provider Fabscale, have engineered a new way to analyze coffee for quality control, at a low cost. Their new photo-based app Roastpic is launching on April 12 to give anyone with a smartphone a better picture of the quality of their coffee beans. 


Read more research in action

Engineering a better world calls for solutions of a different caliber, demanding innovation across disciplines using a design-centric approach.

We employ and develop intelligent systems and automation, tools at the nano-and-micro- scales and technologies for the greater good that will revolutionize energy systems, strengthen climate resilience, advance human health and transform mobility to bring a sustainable, healthier and more resilient world within reach.