Your Friendly Neighborhood Navigator
I straddle the line of a roboticist, technical leader, and chief of staff (executive ‘random thing do-er’). I seek out hard problems and stumble into opportunities in all domains. I’m an independent, systems, and strategic thinker who’s thinking about robotics and coalition building. All of that is to say, I’m just your friendly neighborhood navigator, missing a funny hat.
Steve Macenski is the CEO of Open Navigation LLC, the organization behind Nav2 which supports the ROS mobile robotics ecosystem and commercial partners. Steve is well-known in the field for his expertise in navigation, community building, and technical project management with 10+ years of experience. He is the creator of Nav2 and SLAM Toolbox, standards in the ROS and mobile robotics communities.
Headshot: [large]
Current
Open Navigation LLC - CEO & Chief Navigator
Principal architect, developer, and product manager for the ROS 2 Navigation stack, Nav2. Bringing the ROS and mobile robotics ecosystem into a new chapter of development and community-sustainable maintenance to support commercial users and accelerate the robotics industry globally.
IEEE RAS Robotics & Automation Practice Journal - Senior Editorial Board
Reviewing and shaping publications bridging robotics research and real-world deployment. Contributing editorial direction to advance the journal's mission of connecting academic innovation with industry practice.
Maryland Robotics Center - Advisory Board Member
Providing strategic guidance and industry perspective to support the center's research direction, student development, and partnerships with the broader robotics community.
Previously
University of Illinois Department of Aerospace Engineering - Recent Alumni Board Member
Advised on curriculum relevance, mentored students, and helped strengthen connections between the department and the aerospace and robotics industries.
Samsung Research - Senior Technical Lead, Robotics Engineering Lead
Chaired the Navigation Working Group and developed Nav2 into a premier community resource. Advocated for high-quality open-source robotics software to democratize access to robotics, with the goal of making Nav2 the "standard library" of robotics.
Simbe Robotics - Senior Robotics Engineer, Robotics & Navigation Lead
Full-stack robotics engineer building dependable systems for Tally, the retail auditing robot. Developed SLAM, perception, and autonomy algorithms that became industry standards. Deployed the company's first 100+ robots.
Education
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign - B.S. Aerospace Engineering
Thesis: "Robotic Software Architecture and Experimental Elastic Rod Manipulation For Helix Model Validation"
Woodworking
When I’m not building robots, I’m building furniture. A few projects from the shop:
