Professor Francesco Borrelli of UC Berkeley, recipient of the 2025 ISSNAF Innovator TEF Award for STEM Entrepreneurs in Robotics, explores how intelligent machines can anticipate the future rather than simply react to it, from self-driving cars to robotic platforms, through the powerful framework of model predictive control. His work spans healthcare, energy efficiency, robotics, and finance, while large language models are opening entirely new frontiers in human-machine interaction. 

Prof. Borrelli also reflects on his Italian roots and urges young researchers to follow their passion, pursue learning wherever it leads, and stay open to unexpected paths.