Tandem Industry Academia (TIA) Professor (2023)
Professor Ari Väänänen’s project aims to develop new approaches to mental health treatment
Project title:
Towards research-driven mental health support among employees: machine learning and short-term psychological consultations as emerging solutions in work-related healthcare
Approved funding:
198 599 €
Applicant:
Finnish Institute of Occupational Health
Industrial partner:
Terveystalo Healthcare
“Our joint project with Terveystalo is a great opportunity because they’re a research-oriented company with unique data resources and a strong commitment to developing preventive occupational healthcare. Combining their extensive register sources with national register data will open up several new research paths.”
Ari Väänänen, TIA professor
Mental health challenges are a major cause of work disability. In their joint project, Research Professor Ari Väänänen from the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health and leading private healthcare provider Terveystalo are searching for new information and new approaches to addressing mental health challenges using machine learning models and data resources. Their goals include identifying early signs of potential mental health issues and assessing the impact of psychological interventions. The project has access to a unique and internationally significant data pool which combines, for the first time ever, data from occupational health services and national register data on employment and health. The results will be used by professionals and experts in the occupational health sector to develop research-based approaches to mental health treatment. The collaboration will both produce high-quality research outcomes and provide a sound knowledge base for recommendations aimed at the business field and at political decision-makers.
Professor Roope Raisamo leads project to introduce sense of touch into metaverse
Project title:
Haptic augmentation in industrial metaverses
Approved funding:
169 715 €
Applicant:
Tampere University
Industrial partner:
Nokia Technologies Oy
“Nokia Technologies is a leading player in metaverse infrastructure development. The results of this collaboration will lend support to international standardization efforts.”
Roope Raisamo, TIA professor
A metaverse is a set of virtual spaces where people can meet and interact without being in the same physical space. Metaverse allows people to work remotely, for instance, regardless of their physical location, thus reducing the need for travel. The aim of this joint project between professor Roope Raisamo from Tampere University and Nokia Technologies is to find ways of introducing the sense of touch into the metaverse, or to explore what scientists call “haptic augmentation”. The collaboration is focused on developing coding and transmission methods for haptic information and associated technologies and on determining the needs and requirements for haptics in the context of multisensory industrial metaverses. In business environments this could pave the way to new dimensions of remote presence, remote control and remote groupwork, for instance. The results of the project will provide new knowledge about the development of metaverses not only for the partner companies involved but also for other industrial stakeholders. That knowledge will also support the development of companies operating in the metaverse and therefore have wider societal impact.
Professor Antti Poso to explore new methods of drug development by means of computational chemistry, machine learning and quantum computers
Project title:
Advancing drug discovery through quantum mechanical simulations via machine learning and quantum computing
Approved funding:
166 288 €
Applicant:
University of Eastern Finland
Industrial partner:
Orion
“This project will allow me both to advance my own research but also to supervise my students in such a way that their research has greater impact outside of academia as well – ultimately that we get to improve people’s health.”
Antti Poso, TIA professor
Drug development can be considered successful if it produces effective, safe and ethically responsible medical therapies. Working closely with industry is imperative to ensure that patients gain access to these new medicines. This joint project between professor Antti Poso from the University of Eastern Finland and Finnish pharmaceutical leader Orion Pharma addresses the utility and applicability of new AI and machine learning methods as well and quantum mechanics and molecular mechanics modelling methods in industrial drug discovery. The platform for the collaboration is provided by Orion’s research infrastructure, but the results will also be made available to academic drug research. The project will also be working to develop computational chemistry methods for use in new quantum computers. If successful, the project may significantly improve the efficiency of drug development in both academia and industry.
