Novia University of Applied Sciences joins new research initiative in human-centered AI

1.12.2025
Vaasa News
Novia fasad 3

The Academy of Finland has granted €2.8 million to establish HUMAIN, a new research infrastructure in Vaasa. The project is a collaboration between four universities of applied sciences, combining their areas of expertise into a joint effort for the future of human–AI interaction.

The initiative integrates both humanistic and technical perspectives to better understand and develop the interaction between humans and technology.

“Intelligent systems and artificial intelligence are identified as growing focus areas in Novia’s strategy, and our goal is to be a pioneer in Finland in applied intelligent systems and AI. The HUMAIN project significantly supports this objective,” says John Dahlbacka, Research Director in Sustainable Technology at Novia.

The initiative also strengthens regional innovation environments and supports both industry and public sector actors in their digitalization and development ambitions. HUMAIN contributes to achieving the region’s goals for sustainable technology development, offering opportunities to test new technologies, improve production, and build future competencies.

“Robotics has received a major boost as models behind ChatGPT have been further developed to also control robots. The HUMAIN project enables us to adopt this technology and put it into practice,” says Johan Westö, Project Manager at Novia.

The HUMAIN – Human–AI Interaction Nexus – project will run throughout 2026. It is led by Åbo Akademi, with the University of Vaasa, Novia University of Applied Sciences, and Vaasan ammattikorkeakoulu as partners.

The initiative is part of the Academy of Finland’s call for local research infrastructures within the national FIRI program.

 

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