Namal Rathnayake, PhD

Namal Rathnayake is an AI innovator, researcher, optimizer, and educator based in Japan. He currently serves as Researcher (Science) / Project Researcher (II) at JAMSTEC (Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology), working within the WPI-AIMEC program to advance marine ecosystem change research. Previously, he was a Project Researcher at The University of Tokyo, where he led the design of a hybrid deep learning model to optimize Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) systems and investigated advanced data assimilation techniques. Dr. Rathnayake earned his Ph.D. in Computer Science from Kochi University of Technology (2020–2023), developing and applying novel cascaded Adaptive Network-based Fuzzy Inference System (Cascaded-ANFIS) algorithms across domains such as flood prediction, image classification, and drone path planning. He holds an M.Sc. in Robotics and Automation Engineering from the University of Salford (2017–2019) and a B.Eng. (Hons.) in Electronics and Telecommunication from the University of Wolverhampton (2013–2016), where he focused on 3D reconstruction and UAV autopilot systems. Recognized with the Sakuma Award (Mar 2023) for outstanding Ph.D. research and a recipient of multiple KAKENHI grants—including a ¥14.55 M award for long-term rainfall–runoff prediction—he is passionate about education and has lectured on AI, embedded systems, and robotics at the Open University of Sri Lanka and the Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology.