• Chief Scientific Officer & Medical Director
• Principal Investigator
• Board-Certified Adult Psychiatry
• Conducted Phase I-IV clinical trials in outpatient and inpatient facilities

As a Chief Scientific Officer and Medical Director, Dr. Kakar plays a key role in development and execution of scientific strategy for Segal Trials and provides oversight of the medical team. Dr. Kakar is a board-certified psychiatrist who has been focused on investigating new treatments for patients suffering from mental illness through rigorous research for over 12 years. Dr. Kakar has been a Principal Investigator of over 200 phase I to IV outpatient and inpatient clinical studies in indications including ADHD, depression, anxiety, bipolar, PTSD, schizophrenia, substance abuse, and other neuropsychiatric conditions. Dr. Kakar maintains a specialized focus on early phase research and has contributed to many First in Human, SAD, MAD studies. Driven by long standing passion to explore innovative treatment options for mental illness, Dr. Kakar was one of the earliest private researchers to receive DEA Schedule 1 license to conduct research on Psychedelics. Dr. Kakar currently serves as a Medical Director for Segal Trials’ Center for Psychedelic and Cannabis research and is investigating potential of Psilocybin, LSD, Cannabis, and 5 Meo-DMT among others for treating various psychiatric conditions.

Additionally, Dr. Kakar has extensive experience collaborating with pharmaceutical, biotech and clinical research organizations and has been highly sought after for his input on research methodology and clinical trial design. He is actively involved in speaking and presenting at local and national organizations, participating in advisory panels, and has successfully published in reputable scientific journals and presented at numerous scientific meetings.

 Dr. Kakar received his medical degree from Albany Medical College, where he was selected to the prestigious Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) Honors Medical Society and received Harold O Wiggers scholarly physician award. During the training, his commitment to psychiatric and neurological diagnosis and treatment was recognized by him receiving “American Academy of Neurology Award for Excellence in Neurosciences”. His post graduate residency training included medical internship at Drexel University-St. Peters University Hospital, where he was given the “Most Outstanding Resident of the Year Award” for excellence in Medicine. Thereafter, he pursued his psychiatry training at Georgetown University School of Medicine where he was nominated for a teaching award. In the final year of training, Dr. Kakar was selected for a Clinical Fellowship at National Institutes of Mental Health, where he had an opportunity to focus on specialized psychiatric and neurological care in patients undergoing clinical trials. Additionally, Dr. Kakar was actively involved in providing psychiatric assessments as a key member of psychogenic movement disorder research team.

In his spare time, Dr. Kakar can be found spending time with his energetic family, exploring new cuisines, exercising, hiking/biking, writing creatively and meditating.