Building Curve

Systems

Building innovative systems of sufficient realism, scale, performance and usability to directly impact the practice of computing is a hallmark of Carnegie Mellon.

We often use the statement “System building is a first-class activity” to signify our belief that this activity is worthy of the finest minds and deserves the highest respect. We also believe that the effort involved in building realistic systems is amply rewarded by the insights gained and the impact achieved.

A rich tradition of systems such as Mach, Warp, Camelot, AFS, Spice, Hydra, Cm* and C.mmp stretching over twenty-five years forms the backdrop for our current research.

News

Group shot of the students on Team Resnik, holding their poster and the NASA SUITS seal.

Navigating the Moon

CMU Students Design Autonomous System for NASA Challenge

Thursday, August 20, 2026

Team Resnik aimed to reduce an astronaut's cognitive load while using a lunar rover — meaning they wanted to make it easier for astronauts to stay alert and safe while operating the rover. While CMU has participated in NASA SUITS before, team lead Maggie Chen said this felt like an entirely new endeavor because they were starting from scratch. The Pennsylvania Space Consortium provided a grant to support Team Resnik throughout the challenge. Along with Chen and Ang, the team included CMU undergraduates Parinthapat Pengpun, Daniel Stankiewicz, Serena Cai, Jean Chen, Charlie Ai, Jose Lima, Napat Warasittichai and Hagen Qian. Read More
Portrait of Mahadev Satyanarayanan.

Satya Honored With Test of Time Award

Thursday, August 6, 2026

Satya Honored With Test of Time Award

Mahadev Satyanarayanan (Satya), the Jaime Carbonell University Professor of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University, received a Test of Time Award for his work on a 2009 research paper, "The Case for VM-Based Cloudlets in Mobile Computing."

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Gates Center viewed from the Pausch bridge on the CMU Pittsburgh Campus

CMU Tops U.S. News Graduate CS Rankings

Wednesday, April 8, 2026

Carnegie Mellon ranks first for overall graduate computer science programs, tied with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Stanford University. Among computer science programs, CMU also earned No. 1 rankings in Programming Language, Artificial Intelligence, and Systems, along with a No. 2 ranking in Theory (tied with University of California Berkeley).

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