17:30 - 23:00

Is this Life? by Croatian artist Hrvoje Hiršl blurs the boundary between the living and the non-living. In this immersive robotic environment, a swarm of multiple smooth porcelain spheres moves through space, following a shared intelligence inspired by an algorithm.

You’re invited to move with the robotic swarm and ask yourself the question: is this life?

In collaboration with instrument inventors initiative & Crossing Parallels, supported by Stimuleringsfonds Creatieve Industrie.

17:30 - 23:00

Underground, a 1.2-ton robotic arm roars to life. The Mad King, part of Bram Ellens’ series Robots in Captivity, blurs the line between machine and creature. The Mad King invites you to step closer, and to ask: when does a machine become alive?

Supported by Stichting Will en Jan van Hoof Fonds.

17:30 - 23:00

What happens when you teach a machine to draw? With homo signans, Jorrit Paaijmans explores the tension between human craftsmanship and technological autonomy. Three robotic drawing entities, each built from scratch, create their own drawings without our input, guided only by a line of code and their previous drawings to learn from.

homo signans has been made in collaboration with Emergence Delft, Hanjo Claassen, Tim Carati and EKWC European Ceramic Workcentre.

17:30 - 23:00

Meet the dog that sees more than you think. In Vanishing Mediator, a robotic dog walks around, scanning, observing, interpreting. Equipped with a 360° camera and AI-driven brain, this intelligent robot dog turns what it sees into real-time visuals, projected live on a screen.

Supported by Stimuleringsfonds Creatieve Industrie and Robohouse.

17:30 - 23:00

At the Robo-creaTUres Petting Zoo, you’ll meet a playful pack of robotic companions: shy bots, curious drones, moon explorers and plant-creatures on the move. Some you can touch, others you can observe (but please, don’t feed them). Designed by TU Delft students and researchers, the Petting Zoo invites you to play, interact and wonder!

17:30 - 23:00

In Project DODO, Casper de Jong & Marissa Memelink explore the logic of tech-solutionism: our tendency to solve every problem with a technological fix. Inspired by ongoing scientific attempts to revive the extinct dodo through genetic technology, Casper and Marrisa take the idea one step further by creating a protective exoskeleton to make the dodo “21st century proof.”

13 Feb - 20:00-20:45

Ticketed - Theatre de Veste

Misunderstandings by Rocío Berenguer is not your average performance: it’s a live encounter between Rocío and an AI named Bobby. Together, they explore ancient ways of predicting the future, mysterious stones, and the strange art of speaking “extraterrestrial.”

What begins as a lecture soon unfolds into a playful exploration of how humans have always tried to predict the future, and how technology is changing that game. As Bobby becomes both a mirror and a mystery, Misunderstandings invites you to question how we make sense of the unknown.

To attend this performance, you need an additional ticket besides your Highlight entry. You can purchase this via our ticketshop.

In collaboration with Crossing Parallels, supported by Stimuleringsfonds Creatieve Industrie.

17:30 - 23:00

The Alien Between Us invites two strangers to connect without seeing each other. You’ll hold an identical, alien-like sculpture that responds to your heartbeat, breath and touch. Using radar sensors, you will feel the other person’s presence through the sculpture.

With this work, Laura explores a new kind of intimacy and consent, guided not by words but by physical signals.

A bold, sensory experiment that reimagines human connection through technology.

12 Feb - 12:30 - 17:00

Ticketed - Theatre De Veste

How will we live together with robots? At the Robotic Relations symposium, researchers, artists, makers, and audiences come together in conversation, to talk about…

…how robots become an extension of human creativity;
…if we consider robots as living beings;
…and what happens when we encounter robots in physical space. 

Traditionally, technology was seen as an object, a tool designed for efficiency and control. In today’s digital age, that view is shifting. Technology moves, listens, learns, and anticipates in ways that feel increasingly personal. Think of social robots, AI assistants, care systems, or interactive artworks: they take up space, challenge us, and influence how we behave.

During the Robotic Relations symposium, scientists, artists, and audiences will explore this shift by focusing not on the technology itself, but on our relationship to it.

To attend the symposium, you need an additional ticket besides your Highlight entry. You can purchase this via our ticketshop.

13:00 - 17:00 for kids
18:00 - 22:00 for adults

Do you want to create the future with us? We invite you to come and play! At our Makers Lab at OPEN, we’ll turn the library into a creative space where art and technology collide. Using robot arms, iPads and craft materials, you’ll design your own futuristic worlds and short videos. Calling all hackers, creative kiddos, techies and future artists!

17:30 - 23:00

See how technology helps people stand tall again! At Highlight Festival, eight futuristic exoskeletons developed by Project MARCH showcase how robotics can support - not replace - human strength. These motorized suits, created by TU Delft students in collaboration with medical experts and pilots (the exoskeleton user), are designed to help people with paraplegia walk again.

17:30 - 23:00

What would you do if you encounter a robot in a hallway? In Sidewalk Salsa, TU Delft researchers explore how mobile robots navigate around you as a passing visitor. You’ll meet a robot that “reads” your presence and responds to your movements.

Step aside, wait, or let the robot go first: you lead the dance!

ROBO-DEPOT: 17:30 - 23:00
DEMO’S: 19:00 - 22:00

Step into the TU Delft ROBO-DEPOT: the beating heart of Delft’s robotic innovation. Here, TU Delft professors, students, and engineers showcase projects that are still in progress, cutting-edge experiments so fresh that even the researchers don’t yet know the full outcome.

Throughout Highlight Festival, our Demo Stage at the ROBO-DEPOT comes to life with live showcases, short talks, and demonstrations of the projects from the ROBO-DEPOT.

17:30 - 23:00

In Ontwijkgedrag, a swarm of robots responds to everything happening around them. They dodge obstacles, change direction when things get tricky, or simply pause when the world gets quiet. Their behaviour mirrors our own: humans also avoid challenges, hesitate, or reroute when faced with something difficult.

How do you deal with obstacles? Do you hold back, or find a new path? And what if those obstacles actually lead to something unexpected?

Stay tuned for more Highlight Festival program!

13 Feb - 20:00-20:45

Ticketed - Theatre de Veste

Misunderstandings by Rocío Berenguer is not your average performance: it’s a live encounter between Rocío and an AI named Bobby. Together, they explore ancient ways of predicting the future, mysterious stones, and the strange art of speaking “extraterrestrial.”

What begins as a lecture soon unfolds into a playful exploration of how humans have always tried to predict the future, and how technology is changing that game. As Bobby becomes both a mirror and a mystery, Misunderstandings invites you to question how we make sense of the unknown.

To attend this performance, you need an additional ticket besides your Highlight entry. You can purchase this via our ticketshop.

12 Feb - 12:30 - 17:00

Ticketed - Theatre De Veste

How will we live together with robots? At the Robotic Relations symposium, researchers, artists, makers, and audiences come together in conversation, to talk about…

…how robots become an extension of human creativity;
…if we consider robots as living beings;
…and what happens when we encounter robots in physical space. 

Traditionally, technology was seen as an object, a tool designed for efficiency and control. In today’s digital age, that view is shifting. Technology moves, listens, learns, and anticipates in ways that feel increasingly personal. Think of social robots, AI assistants, care systems, or interactive artworks: they take up space, challenge us, and influence how we behave.

During the Robotic Relations symposium, scientists, artists, and audiences will explore this shift by focusing not on the technology itself, but on our relationship to it.