Dr Mauro S. Innocente‘s work on Swarm Intelligence dates back to his MSc work in 2004-2006, his PhD research in 2006–2010, and his postodctoral work in 2011–2014 at Swansea University (UK), under the supervision of Professor Johann Sienz.
He also applied Particle Swarm Optimisation (PSO) to the optimal design of FRP-reinforced concrete beams during his time at Universitat de Girona (Spain) in 2006, to solve the jetty scheduling problem for oil refineries, the Kriging-based optimisation of oil extraction from petroleum fields, and general structural design optimisation problems during his time at Swansea University in 2005–2014, and to solve the optimal design of power-dense converters while at Cardiff University in 2014–2015.
Upon completion of his PhD, hallway discussions with Professor Johann Sienz at Swansea University in 2010 sparked Dr Mauro Innocente‘s interest in applying swarm robotics to the wildfire suppression problem. He would develop this idea and publish his early work on this topic during his time at Coventry University in 2015–2025 (first papers written in collaboration with his PhD student, Paolo Grasso).
The Smart Vehicles Control Laboratory (SVeCLab) was founded at Coventry University in 2016 by Dr Mauro S. Innocente, Dr Arash M. Dizqah and Dr José M. Herreros. After the other two co-founders left the institution, the focus of the laboratory shifted and its name was accordingly changed to the Autonomous Vehicles and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (AVAILAB) in 2018. The AVAILAB was led and managed by Dr Mauro S. Innocente until it was closed upon his leaving the institution in July 2025.
SwarmMind™ was formally founded by Dr Mauro Innocente in August 2025, with Dr Paolo Grasso joining in January 2026.
Other contributors to publications relevant to SwarmMind are:
- Professor Johann Sienz (Particle Swarm Optimisation).
- Dr Mohammad Tavakol Sadrabadi (wildfire modelling, and wildfire emergency response).
- Professor Guillermo Rein (wildfire emergency response, and class A foams enhanced by nanoparticles).
- Professor Joaquim Peiró (wildfire emergency response).
- Dr Ioannis Papagiannis (class A foams enhanced by nanoparticles).
- Dr Evangelos Gkanas (class A foams enhanced by nanoparticles).
- Dr Carlos Walker-Ravena (class A foams enhanced by nanoparticles).
- Dr Jun Jet Tai (AI-enabled drones).
The work on the optimal design of power-dense converters was funded by the EPSRC Centre for Power Electronics in 2015–2016.
The published research on the use of nanoparticles to enhance the performance of class A foams for wildfire suppression was funded by the Lloyds Registry Foundation (LRF) International Consortium on Nanotechnology in 2020–2024.
Early market discovery for the commercialisation of Dr Mauro Innocente‘s research on swarm intelligence applied to wildfires was funded by the Innovate UK TMF AI ICURe Explore grant in 2025, hosted by Imperial College London and with Professor Guillermo Rein acting as scientific advisor.
SwarmMind Ltd 