Francesco Cupertino is Professor of Converters, Machines, and Electric Drives at the Polytechnic University of Bari, where he teaches Electric Machines in the Bachelor's Degree Program in Industrial and Naval Systems Engineering and Generators, Actuators, and Aeronautical Electrical Systems in the Bachelor's Degree Program in Aerospace Systems Engineering.

His scientific work focuses on the design and control of electric machines for aeronautical and renewable energy applications, signal analysis for fault diagnosis, and the development of drones and mobile robots. He is the author of approximately 200 scientific publications, with over 3,000 citations and an H-index of 28 (SCOPUS), and is a Senior Member of the IEEE.

He has promoted the creation of numerous joint public-private laboratories with leading companies, including AVIO Aero (GE Aerospace), Bosch, and Molino Casillo, and the BINP – Business Innovation in Poliba incubator.

He was Rector of the Polytechnic University of Bari from 2019 to 2025, a member of the CRUI Council with responsibility for relations with businesses and ICT, and represented Italy in the European Innovation Council (EIC) and in the European Innovation Ecosystems of Horizon Europe. He is currently President of the NEST Foundation, a member of the Board of Directors of ARTI Puglia and the Scientific Committee of Criptaliae Spaceport, as well as the Italian representative in the OECD Working Group on Research Integrity and Security.