Robin Brewer is an Assistant Professor in the School of Information at the University of Michigan. Her research focuses on building and studying digital systems to better support older adults (ages 65+), disabled people (e.g., Blind, low vision, cognitive disability), and caregivers. Much of her current work focuses on designing conversational, voice, and AI-powered technologies for expression, search, and care. 

Dr. Brewer co-founded the Accessibility, HCI, and Aging (AHA!) lab across the School of Information, Computer Science and Engineering, and STAMPS School of Art and Design. Dr. Brewer is also affiliated with MISC (focused on interactive and social computing), ESC (focused on ethics and computing), and the Digital Studies Institute. Dr. Brewer's work has been supported by grants from NSF with an early CAREER award, NIH, Google, the Department of Transportation, and the Retirement Research Foundation.

Pronouns

she/her/hers

Areas of interest

accessibility, disability studies, user experience, human-computer interaction (HCI)

Honors & Awards

The Brilliant 10 list | Popular Science | 2023 
Anita Borg Early Career Award | Computing Research Association | 2023 
Joan C. Durrance Community Engagement Award | University of Michigan | 2023 
Presidential Postdoctoral Fellowship | University of Michigan | 2017-2019

Education

Prof. Brewer holds a B.S. in Computer Science from University of Maryland, M.S. in Human-Centered Computing from UMBC, and Ph.D. in Technology and Social Behavior from Northwestern University. Her postdoctoral research was supported by the prestigious President's Postdoctoral Fellowship.