Dr Mohammad Swash
Lecturer in Digital Media

Summary

Dr Rafiq Swash is an academic, researcher and technology leader whose work sits at the intersection of artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, advanced 3D imaging and digital transformation. He joined Brunel University of London in 2013 and serves in the Department of Electronic and Computer Engineering and Digital Media, where he leads the Holoscopic 3D Research Group and previously served as Programme Director for the MSc in Digital Design and Branding.

He holds a PhD in Holoscopic 3D Imaging, Processing and Display Systems and a First-Class BEng in Computer Systems Engineering, both from Brunel, where he was awarded the Chancellor's Prize and the Brunel Medal for Outstanding Achievement. He has since completed executive programmes at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford, and the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership.

Dr Swash's research has spanned several major internationally funded projects, including the European Commission's RUSHES, 3DVIVANT and Internet of Radio Light programmes, and the Qatar National Research Fund's CEPROQHA initiative. He has authored more than seventy peer-reviewed publications and supervised 20+ doctoral researchers and 200+ PG/UG students to completion. He has also held a Visiting Professorship at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Alongside his academic career, Dr Swash has built substantial entrepreneurial experience in translating advanced research into industrial applications, with a focus on AI-enabled autonomous systems for global industrial logistics. His ventures have delivered live commercial deployments across the world with several of the largest port operators, and he was shortlisted for the Great British Entrepreneur Awards in 2023. He currently serves on the Advisory Boards of the Freight Innovation Cluster at Connected Places Catapult and Marlan Space in Abu Dhabi.

His work has been recognised through the Vice Chancellor's Doctoral Research Prize, the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society Best Paper Award, and selection among the Top 50 high-impact research outcomes in Brunel University's 50th anniversary celebrations. He serves on the editorial board of Frontiers in Virtual Reality, and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, a Fellow of Advance HE and a member of the Forbes Technology Council.

Qualifications

• PhD in Holoscopic 3D Imaging, Processing and Display Systems, Brunel University of London, 2014
• BEng (First Class) in Computer Systems Engineering, Brunel University of London, 2008 - awarded the Chancellor's Prize and Brunel Medal for Outstanding Achievement
• Executive Programme in Venture Finance, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford
• High Impact Leadership Programme, University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership

Responsibility

• Lecturer, Brunel Design School
• Impact Champion, Brunel Design School
• Programme Director, MSc Digital Design and Branding
• Lead, Holoscopic 3D Research Group
• Doctoral supervision in advanced imaging and display systems, AI and autonomous robotics, and immersive and creative technologies
• Module Lead across undergraduate and postgraduate programmes including BSc Digital Design, BSc Visual Effects and Motion Graphics, and MSc Digital Design and Branding

Enquiries from prospective researchers and doctoral candidates

If you are excited about working at the frontier of advanced 3D imaging, AI and autonomous systems, immersive technologies and the translation of research into real-world impact, please get in touch. Dr Swash is always pleased to hear from ambitious researchers and prospective doctoral candidates with original ideas — particularly in embodied AI, robotics foundation models, multi sensor fusion, autonomous digital twinning, and the next generation of glasses-free 3D display and gesture sensing technologies. Let us explore what we could build together.