Najeeb Najeeb

MIU alumnus Najeeb Najeeb recently rejoined MIU faculty after completing his PhD in robotics and spending two years working on self-driving cars in California.

 

Associate Professor Najeeb earned his undergraduate degree in computer science from the University of Baghdad and worked in software and web development for five years in Iraq.

 

In 2006 he heard about the practical approach of MIU’s ComPro Program from a friend and applied. He began his studies in 2007 and, when he finished his on-campus courses, the Computer Science Department asked him to join as a faculty member.

He found his studies in robotics as much play as work, and in the process he realized he had gained a competitive advantage at MIU. “I was able to get more done than my peers because I got my eight hours of sleep and my TM practice,” he said. “I was more awake in class, which made me more effective.”

 

Professor Najeeb completed his doctorate degree in four years. He wrote his dissertation on a no-prior-knowledge-based algorithm for near optimal wireless power transfer from a drone to an underground sensor, and then implemented and demonstrated his work. The algorithm he wrote has several implementations, one of which enabled an agricultural drone to more efficiently charge the batteries of a sensory network in a drip irrigation system, saving time and energy.

Professor Najeeb completed his doctorate degree in four years. He wrote his dissertation on a no-prior-knowledge-based algorithm for near optimal wireless power transfer from a drone to an underground sensor, and then implemented and demonstrated his work. The algorithm he wrote has several implementations, one of which enabled an agricultural drone to more efficiently charge the batteries of a sensory network in a drip irrigation system, saving time and energy.

 

He wanted to continue working in robotics, and he chose the most exciting area in the field: autonomous vehicles. He accepted a job at the self-driving car company Cruise in San Francisco. “It felt like playing a video game,” he said. “I was able to test the results of the lines of code I wrote.”

 

In 2020 Professor Najeeb accepted an invitation from MIU to return to Fairfield and now teaches courses in web and enterprise applications.