Digital Economy

Research at the core of the digital transformation

Digital Economy is a multidisciplinary and phenomenon-driven research platform at the University of Vaasa, focusing on the impacts of digital transformation on industry and society. The platform provides an open research environment for exploring innovations enabled by new technologies and their effects on individuals, organisations, and society from various disciplinary perspectives.

At the heart of the research is the entire lifecycle of data and information: how knowledge is produced, collected, transferred, stored, analysed, managed, utilised in business, and protected. The research and development activities of the Digital Economy platform are primarily funded by external sources and carried out in collaboration with various stakeholders.

Research themes include, among others:

Artificial intelligence and machine learning in industry and decision-making
Smart industry, such as robotised logistics, resilient IoT, and sustainable automation
Data analytics in business and finance
Virtualisation
Development and utilisation of big data, open data and cloud services
MyData – data rights, ownership, ethics and regulation
Digital crowdsourcing platforms and ecosystems
Sensoring of the built environment and the use of space data
Intelligent and robust ICT of power systems and distribution

The Digital Economy platform acts as a bridge between research, technology, and society – providing knowledge, solutions, and new perspectives for managing and leveraging digital transformation.

The research platform receives support for the development of research and operations from a multidisciplinary Advisory Board, which brings together influential representatives from the business sector.

Latest updates

21.03.2025 Energy

EnergyWeek 2025 brought together researchers, policymakers and industry leaders in Vaasa – discussions highlighted innovative energy solutions, and collaboration between universities and companies

13.03.2025 Society

New AI project aims to prevent cyberattacks on wireless networks

09.01.2025 Insights

Professor of the Year 2025 Heidi Kuusniemi prevents satellite positioning jamming

Show more news

Projects

Project	Duration	Funders
TRUST - Enhancing Wireless Communication & Sensing with Secure, Resilient, and Trustworthy Solutions	03/2025 - 02/2028	EU - Interreg Aurora, Lapin liitto
Vaasa Climate Commitment	01/2025 - 12/2026	EU - European regional development fund ERDF & ESF (2021-2027), The Regional Council of Ostrobothnia
InnoWind Innovative Offshore Wind Power Infrastructure Service and Maintenance Business	11/2024 - 10/2026	EU - Just Transition Fund (JTF), The Regional Council of Ostrobothnia
TENTA Tools for enterprises to leverage artificial intelligence	08/2024 - 07/2027	EU - European regional development fund ERDF & ESF (2021-2027)
Harmonizing Profit and Planet: A Geo-Informed Machine-Learning for Environmental Accounting	02/2024 - 01/2027	Liikesivistysrahasto
Distributed AI for enhanced security in satellite-aided wireless navigation (RESILIENT)	01/2024 - 12/2026	Research Council of Finland
HAVU - Hyvinvointia ja elämyksiä yksityismetsistä uusien teknologioiden avulla	01/2024 - 06/2026	EU - Just Transition Fund (JTF), Etelä-Pohjanmaan liitto
Boosting Space Business – the Aurora Region Space Economy Ecosystem	10/2023 - 09/2026	EU - Interreg Aurora, Lapin liitto
DAZE - Data Analytics for Zero Emission Marine	09/2023 - 08/2026	Business Finland, Companies
ORBIT - Ostrobothnian Regional space Business and InnovaTion	05/2023 - 04/2025	EU - European regional development fund ERDF & ESF (2021-2027), The Regional Council of Ostrobothnia