Dr. Umesh Persad is coming from the Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing and Entrepreneurship Unit at the University of Trinidad and Tobago where he was an Associate Professor of Engineering Design, Head of Department, and leader of the Design and Innovation research group. Dr. Persad brings multidisciplinary design thinking to bear on complex problems with interests in Engineering Design, Biomedical Engineering, Engineering Education and Academic Leadership and Management.

He earned his PhD in Engineering Design from the Cambridge Engineering Design Centre, University of Cambridge. His current research is focused on Artificial Intelligence (AI) applied in two areas: (1) Computer Aided Design (CAD) tools for orthopedic product design (especially for low resource settings) and (2) Software tools for Engineering Design Education to enable better learning outcomes at scale including blended learning, intelligent tutoring, and automated evaluation.

He consults for companies across a range of industries in carrying out design and innovation audits, and in developing methods and tools that could support product and process innovation. He also has a keen interest in moving student design projects from concept to commercialization. Finally, he is driven by the desire to develop creative young engineers, and to develop solutions that could help people and make technology available to those who need it the most.

Dr. Persad is accompanied by his wife Aarti and their three children Vaishnavi, Vindi and Abhinav. He enjoys eastern philosophy, singing and composing music, and spending time with his family.