Kartic Subr
K.Subr@ed.ac.uk
Senior Lecturer (Assoc. Prof.),
School of Informatics,
Univ. of Edinburgh, UK.
Office: IF 1.10A
- 2014-2024: Royal Society UR Fellowship
- 2019: Lead, GCRF Impact Accelerator
- 2017: Lead, EPSRC First Grant
- 2016: Royal Society Challenge Grant
- 2013: Post doc., Disnery Research
- 2010: Royal Society Newton Intl. Fellow, UCL
- 2008: Post doc., INRIA-Grenoble
- 2006: Marie-Curie Visitor, INRIA-Grenoble
- 2008: PhD in CS, University of California Irvine
- 2004: MS, University of California Irvine
- 2001: Software Engineer, Hewlett Packard ISO
- 2001: B.E. Comp. Sci. and Engg, Bangalore Univ.
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The Timely Approximations Group, led by Kartic Subr, develops algorithms that accelerate the simulation of physical phenomena to enable both design and reactive applications. High-fidelity simulations are often too computationally expensive for interactive use. Our research focuses on creating fast approximations that preserve essential accuracy while drastically reducing computation, making them suitable for real-time constraints and the demands of inverse problem solving. In computer graphics, we design methods to approximate light transport, reflectance, and geometry, enabling interactive rendering, realistic appearance modelling, and neural scene representations that respond instantly to user input. In protein engineering and design, we explore efficient surrogates for molecular interactions, allowing rapid iteration and optimization in large combinatorial design spaces. These approximations enable machine learning–guided workflows that balance speed with predictive power. In robotics, our work focuses on approximating dynamics and control to support agents that must reason and act under tight time budgets in unpredictable environments.
Our agenda unifies these domains under a central principle: timeliness matters. By developing scalable, explainable approximations of physical processes, we aim to unlock new capabilities for systems that must react quickly, adapt continuously, and empower human creativity across science, design, and engineering.
Group Members
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Kevin Denamganaï Post Doc |
Zhiyuan (Bruce) Zhang 3rd year PhD
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Aleksandra Sobieska 3rd year PhD
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Sean Memery 2nd year PhD
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Zhaocheng Liu 2nd year PhD
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Constance Frachon 1st year PhD
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Previous members
Leonardo Castorina (PhD 2025) Research Scientist Astra Zeneca
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Alexandros Keros (PhD 2023) Post Doc University of Edinb. |
Brian Seipp (MSc Research 2023)
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Tatiana Lopez-Guevara (PhD 2022) Research Scientist DeepMind |
Carson Vogt (PhD 2020) Research Engineer Naval Postgraduate School. |
Elizabeth Vargas (PhD 2019) Software Engineer, Sense Photonics. |
Thomas Guerneve (PhD 2018) Research Engineer, SeeByte. |
Rita Pucci (post doc. 2017-18) Research Associate, University of Udine. |
Divakaran Divakaran (post doc. 2018-2019) Lecturer Azim Premji University. |
Bio

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