He previously served at Arizona State University as executive vice president of knowledge enterprise development and chief research and innovation officer. He was also director of the Center for Cognitive Ubiquitous Computing (CUbiC), Foundation Chair of Computing and Informatics at the university, and a professor in the School of Computing, Informatics, and Decision Systems Engineering (CIDSE), part of the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering.[2]
In January 2025, Sethuraman Panchanathan was honored with the Padma Shri, India's fourth-highest civilian award, by the Government of India.[3][4]
Early life and education
Panchanathan was born and raised in Chennai in India.[5] He attended the Vivekananda College (University of Madras), graduating in 1981 with a B.Sc. in physics.[6] Subsequently, in 1984, he earned a B.E. in Electronics and Communication Engineering from the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore, India.[7]
In 1986, he completed his M.Tech. in Electrical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras. He later enrolled in the doctoral program at the University of Ottawa in Canada and received his Ph.D. in electrical and computer engineering in 1989[8] while working under the direction of Morris Goldberg.[9]
Career
University of Ottawa
In 1989, Panchanathan was hired by the University of Ottawa as an assistant professor and was later promoted to associate professor in 1994 after receiving tenure.[10]
Arizona State University
In 1997, Panchanathan was hired as a tenured associate professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona.[11] In 2001, he was promoted to full professor and founded the Center for Cognitive Ubiquitous Computing (CUbiC),[12] which is focused on designing technologies and devices for assisting individuals with disabilities. In the same year, Panchanathan was elevated to IEEE fellow for contributions to compressed domain processing and indexing in visual computing and communications.[13] He also founded and led the School of Computing and Informatics (2006-2009) and the Department of Biomedical Informatics (2005-2007).[12]
Panchanathan was appointed as the university's chief research officer in 2009, where he was responsible for conceptualizing and building large interdisciplinary initiatives at ASU.[14] In 2011, he was promoted to senior vice president of the university's Office of Knowledge Enterprise Development, responsible for the advancement of research, entrepreneurship, innovation and economic development activities.[15]
In 2016, Panchanathan was promoted to executive vice president of ASU Knowledge Enterprise Development and chief research and innovation officer at the university. In this role, Dr. Panchanathan leads the advancement of research, innovation, entrepreneurship, corporate engagement and strategic partnerships, and international development. Under his leadership, ASU's research has grown exponentially, with annual research expenditures quadrupling to more than half a billion dollars over the past 15 years. Continuing on its path as a rapidly growing research enterprise, Arizona State University reported $635 million in research expenditures for fiscal year 2018, up from $545 million in FY17, according to a recent[when?] report by the U.S. National Science Foundation. At that time, ASU was holding its rank at No. 44 for total research expenditures in the U.S., remaining ahead of the California Institute of Technology and the University of Chicago. Among institutions without a medical school, ASU ranked No. 8, ahead of Princeton University and Carnegie Mellon University.[16] In a 2017 Brazilian Congress of Industry Innovation panel discussion, Panchanathan highlighted how universities like ASU ought to work hand-in-hand with businesses to create curriculum that fosters the entrepreneurial traits employers look for today, in order to produce a future of innovation ecosystems.[17] On October 22, 2019, Panchanathan testified before the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Science, Oceans, Fisheries, and Weather in a hearing titled, "Research and Innovation: Ensuring America's Economic and Strategic Leadership," examining the role that research and innovation play in ensuring U.S. leadership in the global economy.[18]
In 2022, Panchanathan announced the Technology, Innovation and Partnership (TIP)s directorate — NSF's first new directorate in more than 30 years.[22] The establishment of TIP is to deliver “Innovation Everywhere for Everyone” by accelerating the translation of science and technology for economic progress, national security, and societal impact. Several new programs were also launched including the Regional Innovation Engines (RIE) to expand the geography of place-based innovation.
Research
Dr. Panchanathan presenting at TEDxASU in Tempe (2017)
Panchanathan's research interests include Human-centered Multimedia Computing (HCMC),[23] assistive and rehabilitative technologies,[24] haptic user interfaces, face/gait analysis and recognition, medical image processing, media processor designs and ubiquitous computing environments for enhancing quality of life for individuals with disabilities.[25] He also mentored over 100 students and scholars, which include graduate students, post-docs, research engineers and research scientists.[26] He spoke on the importance of fostering a culture of innovation to solve grand challenges that society faces today in a 2017 TEDxASU presentation.[27]
Controversies
Arizona State University Lawsuit
In February 2021, Dr. Cynthia Sagers, a professor and former Vice President for Research at Arizona State University's Knowledge Enterprise, filed a lawsuit against ASU and Dr. Sethuraman Panchanathan, then Executive Vice President of the Knowledge Enterprise. The lawsuit alleged that Dr. Panchanathan created a hostile work environment, engaged in gender discrimination, and retaliated against Dr. Sagers by demoting her after she raised concerns about his behavior.
Dr. Sagers claimed that after expressing her grievances to ASU's human resources department in 2019, she was informed by Dr. Panchanathan in January 2020 of plans to transition her to a 50% administrative and 50% faculty position, followed by a full-time faculty role with a 25% salary reduction. She contended that these actions were retaliatory and detrimental to her career prospects.
ASU conducted an internal investigation into Dr. Sagers' allegations and concluded that the claims were unsubstantiated. The university proceeded with the demotion, effective December 1, 2020. Dr. Sagers' salary was reduced from $275,000 in 2019 to $123,750 in 2020 following her reassignment to a faculty position at ASU's Polytechnic campus. [28]
In response to the lawsuit, an ASU spokesperson stated that the university had fully investigated the claims brought forward by Dr. Sagers and found them to be unsubstantiated. Beyond that, the university declined to comment on the pending litigation. [29]
Personal life
Panchanathan is married to Dr. Sarada "Soumya" Panchanathan.[30] They have two children and three grandchildren.[2]
Awards, appointments and fellowships
Governor's Innovator of the Year for Academia Award: Governor's Celebration of Innovation Awards for iCARE (Information Technology Centric Assistive and Rehabilitative Environments) for Individuals who are Blind and Visually Impaired, Center for Cognitive Ubiquitous Computing, 2004.[31]
Microsoft Imagine Cup: World Finals in Touch and Tablet category for CUbiC iCARE Note-Taker Project, Warsaw, Poland, 2010.[32]
