Meet Dr. Malika Meghjani, the assistant professor using robots to make the world a better place

As part of Her World’s Women Of The Year celebration, the Her World Hello Possibilities award is presented in collaboration with Singtel and recognises inspirational female game changers who have made it their business to improve the lives of women and society at large through their company’s impact, creativity and clever use of technology.

As a young student in India, Dr. Malika Meghjani was fascinated by how electricity could be transformed into beautiful images on a screen. This led her to pursue a Bachelor’s degree in Electronics and Communication Engineering, followed by a Master’s in Image Processing and Pattern Recognition. When she realised she wanted her work to interact with the physical world, she found her way to the field of robotics — eventually earning a PhD in Computer Science.

With a scholarship to McGill University in Montreal, Canada, Dr. Meghjani moved across the world, but initially found it lonely, being one of the few women in her field of study. “I went from studying in an all-girls’ school to being in a class of 60 with just six girls,” she recalls. In order to overcome that loneliness, she focused her efforts on building a community of women engineers and computer scientists, a community that she credits as giving her lifelong friends and advisors. Part of that work included reviving the student branch of Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) at McGill, now one of the largest in Eastern Canada. 

Changing the world, one robot at a time

After graduating and moving to Singapore, Dr. Meghjani chose to focus on field robotics, something not very common in the local industry. “[These robots] go out and do things in the wild,” she explains. “So our mission for the Multi-Agent Robot Vision and Learning Lab (MARVL Lab for short) was to have human-centric technologies for multi-robot and human robot teaming.” For the past five years, MARVL has been focused on creating technology that works for the land, air and sea (both above and below). She is currently an Assistant Professor in the Information Systems Technology and Design pillar at the Singapore University of Technology and Design.

Dr. Meghjani lists the “three Ds” as the guiding principles of her work: “If a job is dangerous, dull, or dirty, we ask if it’s something robots can help with.” This reflects her steadfast belief that robotics should be used to improve human lives and communities.

From screens to the seas

Take, for example, one project focused on the inspection of ship hulls. “The whole process is very tedious and not very safe,” she explains. “Usually, a diver has to go down and make a manual assessment, after which various stakeholders have to strategise the cleaning process.” The MARVL Lab’s solution was to develop a robotic system that maps the ship’s hull and conducts a full assessment of biofouling and defects. “So in one shot, all parties receive a standardised report,” she adds.

Another project she highlights is a recent coral-mapping initiative. The process can be challenging if done manually, especially in the presence of oil spills or strong tides. Even after data collection, marine biologists still need to analyse the information manually. To address this, her team developed a framework called Merlion, which allows marine biologists to view a snapshot of all collected data and, even better, interact with it using prompts to retrieve the specific insights they need.

Augmenting, not replacing, human jobs

Dr. Meghjani doesn’t see robots as replacing human jobs. “I’ve thought a lot about this,” she says. “These concerns have existed throughout human innovation. When computers or cars were invented, people were worried that typists or coachmen would lose their jobs. But those roles transformed: coachmen became drivers, typists became data analysts. The same will happen with robots. Where new jobs aren’t created, robots will augment existing ones.”

She holds a similar view on AI. “Remember when GPS was new? People sometimes followed directions straight into ditches. With AI, it’s up to us how we use it. We can’t just rely on the creators.”

Working in a relatively new field in Singapore brings both opportunities and challenges. “Facing fears is hard,” she admits. “But only two things can happen — I fail or I succeed. If I fail, I at least know what to do next.” She’s become a fan of ‘failing fast,’ using setbacks to quickly pivot to better solutions. “I do freeze sometimes, and that’s cost me,” she says. “But when I face my fears, the outcomes are still meaningful.”

The women who inspire her

Family is her foundation. The youngest of three sisters, she credits them for paving her academic path. Now scattered across the globe, she keeps close contact: “I speak to one sister in the morning, one in the evening, and in between, I talk to my parents,” she laughs.

Her professional support comes from students and staff — and women she admires in the field. “Marine scientist and Our Singapore Reefs co-founder Sam Shu Qin, Dr. Jani Tanzil at St. John’s Island National Marine Laboratory, and Biogirl MJ, who runs marine tours. Their work inspires me, and when I need it, I turn to them to recharge my energy.”

PHOTOGRAPHY & ART DIRECTION Shawn Paul Tan
STYLING Cheryl Chan
HAIR & MAKEUP Sveta/Subarbs Studio
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