Stuart originally completed a BSc in Electronic Engineering and then had a long career in programme management implementing technology in global financial services organisations. He has recently switched direction onto a research path and completed Master’s degrees, one in Psychology and the second in Artificial Intelligence. He is now working on his PhD which is researching how to build and evaluate empathic social robots, including how to apply psychologically grounded theories relating to empathy and social interactions. Additionally, Stuart is keen to see how the evaluation of empathic robots can include an assessment of how “psychologically safe” they are, for example not causing harms such as over dependency or inappropriate influence.