Michael Skocik is the Director of Federal Technology Initiatives for the ARM (Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing) Institute, a national manufacturing innovation institute. Michael is responsible for directing a multi-million-dollar portfolio of ARM’s technology development projects and supporting the process by which they are selected. Michael is the program director of the ARM Institute’s AI initiatives for robotics and manufacturing. Through this work, Michael helps to fulfill the ARM Institute’s mission of increasing U.S. global competitiveness by accelerating innovative technologies and workforce programs that make robots and AI more accessible to U.S. manufacturers. Michael has over 20 years of manufacturing, including maintenance, repair and overhaul engineering and service. Michael has served in roles ranging in quality, product management, research & development, program management, and engineering. Recently, Michael has led the development of the ARM Institute’s Flexible Roadmap Process and served as lead designer and facilitator for workshops on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) as well as Multi-Robot Multi-Human Collaboration. Michael is also the director of the National AI Data Foundry program focused on the development of AI/ML tools, datasets, and strategies to accelerate the adoption of robotics for manufacturing applications. Before joining ARM, Michael was employed by Westinghouse Electric Company in the role of Product Management where he managed aftermarket and engineered products for the Global Commercial Nuclear Sector. Michael is a graduate of West Virginia University with a Bachelor of Science degree in the field of Chemical Engineering.