After 24 years with the Institute, CSAIL founding Director Rod Brooks is on to the next challenge. His new startup, Heartland Robotics, aims to be at the forefront of what Brooks sees as a coming revolution in the way robots will be used in daily life. According to him, the Boston area is ripe for technological development and innovation; this success is due in part to all of the robotics startups to be found in the area immediately surrounding CSAIL and MIT, many of whom got their stare by working in collaboration with the lab in various ways. Brooks, who cofounded iRobot (makers of the wildly popular Roomba) will remain on the board of that company and will be on a leave of absence from MIT. To read more, click here.