Hi, I'm Yanda (Luke) Lu

Mechanical Engineer & Robotics Innovator

Aspiring mechanical engineer and robotics innovator with global experience in design, leadership, and AI integration. Passionate about applying engineering principles to real-world problems through interdisciplinary collaboration and rapid prototyping.

View My Work Get In Touch

About Me

Mechanical engineering student at UT Austin building real robots — from humanoid arms at YouiBot to Inhabit's teleoperation hardware.

Robotics is the next platform shift, and whoever makes hardware and data collection radically cheaper wins it.

20+

Robots Designed

14K+

Community Members

2024

World Champion

Featured Work

Education

BS in Mechanical Engineering

University of Texas at Austin Expected: May 2029

Focus: robotics, rapid prototyping, and mechanical systems design — hands-on through UT Center for Autonomy.

Awards & Recognition

🏆

VEX Robotics World Champion 2024

Awarded to the top global team with the highest combined Programming and Driver Skills scores out of 12,000+ teams.

📺

YouTube Bronze Creator Award

Channels with over 10,000 verified subscribers.

🌟

Google Community Challenge Award

Recognized for making significant contributions to the global robotics community through education, mentorship, and innovation.

🏅

Texas Venture Group Hackathon Winner 2026

Won the Texas Venture Group hackathon with team HeatSync, competing against top student entrepreneurs and innovators at UT Austin.

🎓

CIE/USA Young Achiever

Presented to top-performing students nationwide through a competitive selection process based on academic excellence and STEM impact.

Languages

English Native

Mandarin Native

Get In Touch

I'm always open to discussing new projects, creative ideas, or opportunities to be part of your visions.

📧

Email

lukelupvp@gmail.com

Experience

Mechanical Engineer

YouiBot, Shenzhen June 2025 - July 2025

Led design of humanoid robot arm and forearm using SolidWorks
Collaborated with electrical and control systems teams for seamless integration
Focused on fast-paced prototyping, often working extended hours to finalize and deliver CAD designs under tight deadlines

100K+ views

Robotics Researcher

UT Center for Autonomy, Austin August 2025 - Present

Led design of 6-DOF humanoid arm system integrating HopeJr and SO101 components using SolidWorks and Onshape
Developed unified test bench platform combining multi-vendor robotic arms for autonomous manipulation research

25K views

Founder in Residence

Founders Inc. 2026 - Present

Selected for Founders Inc. residency — an exclusive program supporting ambitious founders building next-generation companies
Building at the intersection of robotics, AI, and hardware

Intern

Tess Ventures March 2026 - June 2026

Contributed to early-stage venture operations and deal sourcing at Tess Ventures
Evaluated deep tech and robotics startups, supporting portfolio research and founder engagement

Founder, CEO, Consultant

Robocoaching, Online August 2021 - Present

Built a global, student-led coaching program under the Robolytics brand (11,000+ members, 2M+ views)
Connected top-tier robotics teams with students through a paid mentorship model
Offered advanced tutorials, CAD libraries, and GitHub resources to help competitors level up and succeed on the world stage

Robotics Team Leader

VEX Robotics, Dallas May 2021 - July 2025

2024 World Champion, U.S. Open Champion, Skills World Record Holder
Led team to 30+ awards
Designed 20+ robots in Autodesk Inventor

Mechanical Engineer Co-op

Paradigm Robotics December 2025 - February 2026

Served as mechanical engineer co-op contributing to robotics hardware design and development
Applied CAD and rapid prototyping skills in a professional robotics engineering environment

Projects

Audio Driven Talking Face

Led and presented 1st place-winning research on improving audio-driven facial animation using FLAME and BEAT models at UT Dallas CAST.

AI/ML Research Python

Glasses from the Future (This Shouldn't Exist)

Built a floating display glasses prototype from scratch in 24 hours.

Hardware Rapid Prototyping

20K views

I Built a Laser Pen to Draw on Walls

Designed and built a laser pen that draws on any surface using light projection.

Hardware Laser CAD

10K views

Skills & Technologies

CAD Software

SolidWorks

Autodesk Inventor

Onshape

Programming

Python

Java

C++

JavaScript

AI & Tools

GPT Systems ML Models Git Replit VoiceFlow OBS Leadership Content Creation

CAD & Design

Designing robots, mechanisms, and hardware systems from scratch. From competition drive bases to humanoid arms — every part modeled, rendered, and built to spec.

Design Portfolio