Connor Colombo

Connor Colombo has a diverse work experience in the aerospace and robotics industry. Connor is currently employed at Astrobotic as a FlatSat Systems Engineer II, where they develop and builds hardware and software products for automated testing of spacecraft. Connor is also responsible for vendor selection and communication for the testing hardware. Prior to this, Connor worked as a Software Integration & Testing Engineer II at Astrobotic, where they helped set up software infrastructure for automated testing.

Before joining Astrobotic, Connor worked at Iris Lunar Rover (by Carnegie Mellon University). Connor held multiple roles at Iris, including Chief Engineer, Avionics Co-Lead, Ground Software Lead, Avionics Flight Hardware Design & Testing Engineer, Avionics Flight Software Engineer, and Teleops Development Lead. As Chief Engineer, they ensured the integration of flight and ground systems and diagnosed and fixed any issues. As Avionics Co-Lead, they were in charge of power and avionics systems and integrated the rover with the Peregrine Lunar Lander. As Ground Software Lead, they led multiple subteams in building the software stack for piloting the lunar rover. Connor also worked as a mechanical and software engineer, where they contributed to the battery pack design and built new command line interfaces.

In addition to their aerospace and robotics work, Connor was a Co-Founder of a food-service automation company but put it on hold to focus on their work at Iris Lunar Rover. Connor also founded Ottia, a maker-tech company focused on developing tools for craftsmanship, and served as the Founder, CEO, and Head of R&D. At CMU Techspark Makerspace, Connor worked as a T.E.A.M. Staff Member, where they improved 3D printers and developed a new 3D printer in partnership with makerspace leads. Connor was also involved in levitation and propulsion research as a subteam lead at North Coast Hyperloop.

Connor's journey started with the founding of OTS Co., a design consulting and 3D-printing service that inspired their later work.

Connor Colombo's education history begins with their high school education at Shady Side Academy, where they obtained a High School degree from 2012 to 2016. Connor then pursued their undergraduate studies at Carnegie Mellon University from 2017 to 2021, where they earned a Bachelor's degree with University and College Honors in Robotics & Mechanical Engineering. During this time, they also studied at Case Western Reserve University in 2016, specializing in Mechanical Engineering (BSE), Computer Science (BS), and a minor in Neurobiology. More recently, from 2020 to 2021, they attended Carnegie Mellon University's College of Engineering, obtaining a Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering.