Professor, Robotics, Imperial College London, UK

Research interests: robotics, human-human and human-robot interactions, advanced tools for medical training

Bio:

Thrishantha Nanayakkara is Professor of Robotics at Dyson School of Design Engineering (DSDE), Imperial College London, where he is also the Director of the Morph lab. He is also the speaker (chair) of the Imperial Robotics Forum that consists of 44 robotics research groups across Imperial, and the Industry engagement chair of the UK RAS Strategic Task group for Soft Robotics. He has published more than 150 papers in flagship robotics conferences and journals including IEEE transactions on robotics, International Journal of Robotics Research, Scientific Reports, IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, RSS, IROS, ICRA, and RoboSoft. He is an Associate Editor of IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, Scientific Reports, RSS, ICRA, IROS, RoboSoft, Frontiers in Soft Robotics, and the Journal of Robotics and Mechatronics. He has worked at leading laboratories for robotics and neuromotor control, including the Laboratory for Computational Motor Control, Johns Hopkins University, MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab (CSAIL), and Harvard Neuromotor Control Lab. He is and has been PI on EPSRC and EU funded projects of more than £5 million that have pushed the boundaries of our understanding on how conditioning the body improves the efficacy of action and perception in human-human and human-robot interactions.

Professor Thrishanta Nanayakkara was born in Galle, Sri Lanka, and completed his primary and secondary education at Richmond College, Galle, one of the oldest Methodist Missionary Schools in South Asia. His academic journey was not particularly remarkable up to year 7, as he struggled and eventually became last in his class, prompting him to leave the top group in the grade. This experience served as a wake-up call. Inspired by advice from his eldest brother, who believed in the power of will to achieve goals, Nanayakkara began to see things differently. This shift in mindset led to significant academic improvements, culminating in him ranking within the top 10 in Sri Lanka in the A/L university entry examination, out of over 200,000 students.

Professor Nanayakkara was fortunate to gain admission to the University of Moratuwa on a Mahapola Fulbright Scholarship to study Engineering. He graduated with a First Class Honors Degree in Electrical Engineering in 1996. A volunteer project alongside his brother's PhD supervisor in Japan led to further opportunities for Nanayakkara, including postgraduate studies at Saga University, Japan, with a Japanese Government Monbusho Scholarship. He earned an MSc with distinction in Systems Control and a PhD in Robotics from Saga University in 1998 and 2001, respectively. Following this, he moved to the United States for a postdoctoral position in Computational Human Motor Control with Professor Reza Shadmehr at the School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University.

In 2003, following a peace treaty in Sri Lanka's civil war, Professor Nanayakkara returned to Sri Lanka to establish a bio-inspired robotics lab at the University of Moratuwa. His work, particularly in humanitarian landmine detection in the war-affected Northern part of the country, gained recognition in publications such as Harvard magazine and New Scientist Magazine. During this period, he also served as the Commissioner of the Sri Lanka Inventors Commission. In 2006, Professor Nanayakkara left Sri Lanka and had stints as a Radcliffe Fellow at Harvard University and as a Research Affiliate at CSAIL, MIT. He joined Kings College London as a lecturer in 2008, where he started the Morph Lab. In 2017, he moved the lab to the Dyson School of Design Engineering at Imperial College London, where he has since been enjoying the vibrant robotics community and nurturing environment.

Prof Nanayakkara is a regular practitioner of Vipassana Meditation in the Buddhist Theravadha Tradition at Amaravati and Cittaviveka Buddhist Monasteries. He also practices Karate at the Kyu Dojo under Sense Sue, following the Seiki Juku tradition, and earned a Black Belt in 2017. He attributes Vipassana meditation to helping him find inner peace and Karate in developing patience, respect, and humbleness. Nanayakkara is married to Visakha, whom he credits as a friend and critic who has brought love and happiness into his life since their undergraduate days at the University of Moratuwa. They have two children.