Prof. D. Sakthi Kumar is a Professor at the Faculty of Information Sciences & Arts, Toyo University, Japan. Previous to this position he served as Deputy Director of Bio Nano Electronics Research Center at Toyo University from till 2023.  He received his B.Sc., M.Sc., and Ph.D. degrees in 1989, 1991, and 1998 respectively from Mahatma Gandhi University, Kerala, India. He later pursued Post-Graduation in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning from the University of Texas at Austin, USA in 2020, and completed an MBA in Leadership and Design Thinking from Shizenkan University, Japan in 2023. Early in his career, while working as a Research Associate at the Thin Film Laboratory at IIT Delhi, he was awarded the prestigious JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowship from Japan. He subsequently joined the Bio-Nano Electronics Research Centre (BNERC) at Toyo University in 2001.

Prof. Sakthi Kumar has made significant contributions to interdisciplinary research in bio nanotechnology, biopolymers, and advanced materials particularly in nanodrug delivery against brain tumors. His academic output includes 3 books, 159 research publications—including 17 cover-page articles—25 book chapters, and 9 patents. Under his supervision, 22 Indian doctoral students have successfully completed their Ph.D. degrees. In recognition of his pioneering work in biopolymers, he received the “Asia Excellence Award” from the Society of Polymer Science, Japan in 2012. He is also the recipient of the Education Excellence Award (2018) and the STE International Achiever Award (2020). Currently, he serves as an Editorial Board Member of Scientific Reports (Nature) and Frontiers of Nanotechnology.

A strong advocate of international scientific collaboration, Prof. Sakthi Kumar founded the Indian JSPS Alumni Association (IJAA) (www.indianjspsalumni.org) in 2006 (First association in Asia) and the India–Japan Society for Science, Technology and Education (IJSSTE) (www.ijsste.org) in 2024, serving as Chairman of both organizations. Through these platforms, he has facilitated more than 20 India–Japan scientific seminars in India and in Japan, including six Nobel Laureate lectures. He also serves as Chairman of the committee responsible for selecting Indian students for MEXT scholarships under the Embassy of Japan in India since 2017.

Based on his outstanding contributions to promote India Japan S&T Collaborations for more than 2 decades, Japan Govt. awarded him, Japan Govt.’s prestigious “Japan Foreign Ministers’ Commendation” (in 2025) given to individuals who made outstanding contributions to the promotion of friendship between Japan and other countries, He received the commendation from the Honorable Foreign Minister of Japan, H. E. Takeshi Iwaya.