University of Vaasa involved in a research initiative on human-centred and embodied AI
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The Research Council of Finland has granted €2.8 million to establish HUMAIN – Human–AI Interaction Nexus, a new research infrastructure in Vaasa. The initiative brings together four partners – University of Vaasa, Åbo Akademi University, Novia University of Applied Sciences, and Vaasa University of Applied Sciences (VAMK) – combining their strengths in a joint initiative for future human–AI interaction.
At the University of Vaasa, the project is an interdisciplinary collaboration between the Schools of Marketing and Communication and Technology and Innovations, along with the research infrastructure VME Interaction Design Environment. The initiative combines humanistic and technical perspectives to understand and develop the interaction between humans and technology.
– HUMAIN is the element needed to consolidate the relationship between humans, consumption and fast emerging technologies at the forefront of a future in sustainable and renewable energy. This initiative will place Vaasa in a position to directly investigate and develop human-centered AI systems that will promote a healthy tomorrow, says Rebekah Rousi, Associate Professor of Communication and Digital Economy from the University of Vaasa.
The initiative also strengthens the region's innovation environments and supports both industry and public sector actors in their digitalisation and development ambitions. HUMAIN contributes to realising the region's goals for sustainable technology development and provides opportunities to test new technology, develop production, and build expertise for the future.
– The HUMAIN infrastructure project enables a huge leap for the Vaasa region in advancing the research and adoption of robotics and extended reality technologies, uniting both the higher education institutions of the region as well as industries in Southern Ostrobothnia and Ostrobothnia, says Jani Boutellier, Associate Professor of Computer Science from the University of Vaasa.
Led by Åbo Akademi, HUMAIN – Human–AI Interaction Nexus – will run from 2026 to 2028 with a total budget of €2.8 million, of which the University of Vaasa’s share is nearly €500,000. The initiative is part of the Academy of Finland's initiative for local research infrastructures within the national FIRI programme.