Carnegie Mellon University Opens Robotics Innovation Center

Carnegie Mellon University celebrated the opening of the $100 million Robotics Innovation Center (RIC) in late February of 2026. Located at Hazelwood Green, the site of a former steel mill in Pittsburgh, the 150,000-sf facility embodies the evolution of that industrial heritage by uniting programs in robotics, automation, and artificial intelligence under one roof. Perkins Eastman's vision for the three-story structure created flexible high-bay research spaces and R&D venues that can address robotic systems at different scales. Specialized labs allow interdisciplinary teams to engage in group projects, augmented by instrumentation suites, wet labs, and a multipurpose room for presentations and gatherings. An indoor robotics testing floor spanning 50,000 sf is accompanied by an aquatic lab and a 1.5-acre outdoor area for working with autonomous and unmanned aerial vehicles, including a dedicated 6,000-sf drone cage.

Adaptable interior settings will support future innovation, with exposed steel beams supplying the framework for a reconfigurable layout. A planned 25,000-sf AI accelerator will be established to provide startup companies and commercial partners with access to the RIC’s end-to-end robotics development infrastructure. With a glazed façade to put science on display, the sustainable facility features a building envelope with an optimized window-to-wall ratio for enhanced energy performance, plus HVAC systems equipped with MERV 13 filters and CO2 sensors to ensure superior indoor air quality. Ground was broken in December of 2023 on the public-private project, which is targeting LEED Gold certification.

Home to the world-renowned Carnegie Mellon Robotics Institute, the center was built by a joint venture of Gilbane and Mosites Construction and Development Company, with Tishman Speyer overseeing the transformation of the Hazelwood Green property. The site also houses Carnegie Mellon’s Manufacturing Futures Institute and the Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing Institute, as well as Catalyst Connection and the University of Pittsburgh’s BioForge.

Learn more about the Robotics Innovation Center at Tradeline's Research Facilities 2026 conference.