Welcome Matthias Schmidmaier
- Announcement

Matthias is a research engineer whose work focuses on empathic interaction with intelligent systems, including mental health chatbots and social robots. His research investigates the need for perceived empathy in human–AI interaction, its impact on users, and the mechanisms through which empathy emerges in artificial agents. In his recent work, he examines how perceived empathy can be assessed and modeled in interactions with multimodal large language models and embodied agents. He is also affiliated with the HCI research group at LMU Munich, where he is currently completing his Ph.D.
Alongside his academic work, Matthias brings over 12 years of industry experience in developing human-centered technologies in the areas of affective computing, computer vision, conversational AI, and extended reality (XR). His background spans both dynamic startup environments and collaborations with major international companies, covering roles in technical implementation, product development, and user research. Within the Human-AI Interaction group, Matthias is particularly interested in advancing empathic interaction in robots and conversational agents, bridging rigorous research with real-world impact.
