J.D. Cardenas Cartagena
Juan Diego Cardenas Cartagena
Researcher & ML Engineer
Trustworthy AI for safety-critical systems
I am a researcher and engineer at the intersection of applied mathematics, control theory, and machine learning. My work focuses on designing trustworthy AI agents for safety-critical mechatronics systems — building techniques that are high-performing, provably safe, and interpretable.
I recently joined Youwe Concept B.V. in The Netherlands as a Machine Learning Engineer, and I am finalizing my Ph.D. at the University of Agder, Norway. Previously I was a Lecturer in Artificial Intelligence at the University of Groningen, where I received the Teacher of the Year Award for AI & CCS in 2025.
Outside academia I enjoy analyzing geopolitics and finance, and I support education outreach initiatives to engage young people in science and research.
Research Interests
- Safe Reinforcement Learning — constrained and risk-aware policy optimization
- Data-Driven Control — adaptive and learning-based control for dynamical systems
- Trustworthy AI — interpretability, robustness, and formal verification of autonomous systems
Teaching & Mentoring
At the University of Groningen I taught and co-designed undergraduate and graduate courses in Signals & Systems, Reinforcement Learning, and Machine Learning. I have mentored Bachelor’s and Master’s thesis students in applying rigorous AI methodologies to real-world engineering problems.
Outside academia I participate in science outreach and education initiatives aimed at engaging young people in science and research — particularly through programs in Colombia such as Clubes de Ciencia Colombia and Parque Explora.
News
- [Mar 2026] Started as Machine Learning Engineer at Youwe Concept B.V., The Netherlands.
- [Jun 2025] Received the Teacher of the Year Award for AI & CCS from the Programme Committee AI & CCS, University of Groningen.