{"id":172586,"date":"2026-02-25T14:06:48","date_gmt":"2026-02-25T20:06:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/?p=172586"},"modified":"2026-02-27T15:57:29","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T21:57:29","slug":"raul-monroy-rethinking-ai","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/education-and-humanism\/raul-monroy-rethinking-ai\/","title":{"rendered":"Ra\u00fal Monroy: Rethinking AI"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Artificial intelligence now dominates headlines, boardroom agendas, and everyday conversation. But when Ra\u00fal Monroy entered the field in the 1980s, AI was still a niche pursuit, spoken about mostly in specialized circles. He remembers that when he mentioned having a graduate degree in Artificial Intelligence<\/a>, people reacted with curiosity\u2014and more than a little doubt.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Research professor at the School of Engineering and Sciences<\/a> at Tecnol\u00f3gico de Monterrey, Estado de M\u00e9xico campus, Monroy has spent his career building machine learning systems for automation, cybersecurity, and natural language processing. He founded and leads a research group in advanced artificial intelligence, previously served as president of the Sociedad Mexicana de Inteligencia Artificial, and this year received the 2025 Insignia Award of the R\u00f3mulo Garza Prize for Research and Innovation.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We meet in the library at the Monterrey campus. He arrives exactly on time, greeting me with a firm handshake and an easy smile. In front of the camera, he is relaxed, almost understated. But as the conversation turns to algorithms and research trajectories, his language sharpens\u2014measured, precise, analytical\u2014without losing warmth.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we talk about his childhood, he pushes back gently against the idea of being a prodigy. \u201cCurious,\u201d he says, is the better word. He grew up in Acapulco, where his family ran an auto parts shop. His father, a mechanic, taught him to see the logic behind moving parts\u2014the systems thinking that would later shape his work. As a teenager, he took apart radios and televisions, trying to understand what made them tick. That impulse followed him when he made a defining choice: leaving home to study engineering.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This is not the first time Ra\u00fal has been honored with a R\u00f3mulo Garza Award. On two previous occasions, he has been recognized for his scientific work. (Photo: Alejandro Salazar\/TecScience)
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How did you decide to pursue a career in electronics?
<\/em><\/strong>In the early 1980s there were few higher-education options in either Acapulco or Chilpancingo. Universidad Aut\u00f3noma Metropolitana (UAM), Iztapalapa campus, felt like a new kind of opportunity\u2014one not weighed down by the institutional turmoil that still worried many parents after 1968.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I knew I wanted to be an engineer. I was drawn to the physical sciences, especially physics and mathematics. But I also wanted a path that could improve my economic situation. That combination\u2014intellectual interest and the possibility of mobility\u2014pushed me to study electronic engineering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 1985, after completing his undergraduate degree and working as a lab assistant at UAM, his thesis advisor, Emanuel Moya, invited him to join the Tec as an assistant professor at the Estado de M\u00e9xico campus. He joined the Department of Computing\u2014reluctantly at first, since his interests leaned toward communications\u2014but two years later he encountered artificial intelligence, a turning point that would shape the rest of his career.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the decades, he has become one of Tec\u2019s most experienced voices in AI, mentoring generations of students, publishing extensively, and building a sustained research agenda.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is there an advantage to being a researcher at Tecnol\u00f3gico de Monterrey?<\/strong><\/em>
The institution gave me the opportunity to pursue graduate studies, and that creates a lasting sense of gratitude. I also find that things move here when you push for them\u2014there isn\u2019t the inertia you sometimes encounter elsewhere. It\u2019s a competitive environment, but also a supportive one. Colleagues are engaged, and forums like the Research Congress\u2014now Tec Science Summit\u2014create real intellectual exchange.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ra\u00fal Monroy enjoys traveling and visiting research centers around the world. These trips give him space to exchange ideas, debate openly, and build relationships that extend beyond formal collaborations. (Photos: Courtesy)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AI: From Winters to a \u201cHot Summer\u201d<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Monroy describes AI as a field shaped by cycles of optimism and retrenchment. Today, he says, we are in what he calls a \u201chot summer.\u201d There were times when even using the term made securing funding harder, and some graduate programs quietly avoided it. Yet interest persisted, and in 1987, Mexico formalized its national AI community through the Mexican Society of Artificial Intelligence.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Seeking deeper foundations, Monroy pursued a master\u2019s in computer systems at the Tec and later a PhD in artificial intelligence at the University of Edinburgh. He went on to lead the national AI society from 2010 to 2012 and co-founded the Academia Mexicana de Computaci\u00f3n in 2015.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

He sees today\u2019s landscape as both expansive\u2014spanning dozens of subfields from planning to language to vision\u2014and prone to inflated expectations.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking ahead, should we feel excited or worried about AI?<\/em><\/strong>
Both. One risk is that people accept what a chatbot says without questioning it. We are all exposed to narratives, and manipulation\u2014intentional or not\u2014is real.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the same time, there is genuine progress. Problems that once lacked treatment because of time or resource constraints can now be approached differently. AI is improving how we design and validate complex systems. What we need is broader education so people can use these tools responsibly, and continued research to ensure they are robust and safe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ra\u00fal reflects on how he believes this award will help propel his career as a researcher. (Photo: Alejandro Salazar\/TecScience)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Life beyond research<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Monroy is a Level 3 member of Mexico\u2019s Sistema Nacional de Investigadoras e Investigadores, belongs to the Academia Mexicana de Ciencias, and has been a visiting researcher at the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence in Saarbr\u00fccken. He often emphasizes that while research can be consuming, it cannot be all-consuming.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019ve said that researchers need a balance between their personal and professional lives…
<\/em><\/strong>Balance is hard, especially when you\u2019re ambitious. But you have to try to make room for family, for yourself, and to protect your mental health. Everything has its moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is your relationship with your family like? (He pauses, looking upward before answering.)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

My wife (Claudia Fraustro) and I have been married for 35 years. Our children, Diego and Daniela, are adults now, and they make me very proud. I\u2019ve always tried to keep work from taking over home life\u2014focusing instead on shared activities, time together, sports. They\u2019re interested in what I do, but more importantly, they support me as a person.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you have hobbies?<\/strong><\/em>
I love reading, especially novels. I\u2019m drawn to Latin American writers like Roberto Bola\u00f1o, Julio Cort\u00e1zar, Mario Benedetti, and more recent voices such as Mario Bellatin and Xavier Velasco. I also enjoy long walks\u2014whether in the woods or in a city\u2014and visiting museums such as the Museo del Estanquillo, which always has compelling exhibitions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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