Songsivilai is chairman of Thailand's National Commission on Science, Research and Innovation. He has held several senior national leadership positions, including permanent secretary of the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation; secretary-general of the National Research Council of Thailand; and executive director of the National Nanotechnology Center. He was the founding president of the Thailand Nanotechnology Association, president of the Asia Nano Forum, and chairman of the ASEAN Committee on Science, Technology and Innovation. He received his MD (first-class honours, Gold Medal) from Mahidol University, and his PhD in molecular biology from the University of Cambridge. He is an Anandamahidol Foundation Scholar, a distinction awarded by His Majesty the King of Thailand. Following training and research appointments in the United Kingdom and the United States, he joined Mahidol University, where he became a professor. His research focuses on immunology, molecular biology, and the genomics of tropical infectious diseases. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Thailand and the recipient of several distinguished national and international scientific awards.