IIIT Hyderabad partners NPCI for cybersecurity, develops AI robot navigation

IIIT Hyderabad has signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to strengthen cybersecurity for digital payments. The collaboration, led by IIIT Hyderabad’s Cyber Manthan Centre and its director Professor Sandeep K. Shukla, will cover research, training and knowledge exchange. NPCI managing director and CEO Dilip Asbe said continuous innovation and skilled professionals are needed to address evolving cyber threats. The organisations have not announced specific products or a deployment timeline.

Separately, researchers at IIIT Hyderabad’s Robotics Research Center have made progress on a three-year project with Ati Robotics. They demonstrated an autonomous robot navigating a factory floor using camera images and AI models, instead of relying entirely on LiDAR sensors and detailed maps. Professor Madhava Krishna said the approach mimics how humans recognise landmarks. The research code has been transferred to Ati Robotics for warehouse testing, and parts have been adapted into the company’s own navigation systems.