“Unexpected returns emerge when we do things together”
Diverse teams, cooperation and open discussion can create research impact.
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The path from a research idea to results or a commercial product can be slow and winding, but Lauri Oksanen is on a mission to make this path smoother. Oksanen is chair of the Finnish Research Impact Foundation, which studies and funds ways that researchers can work more closely with industry to transfer knowledge and expertise. Researchers want their work to be visible beyond publications, says Oksanen, but making this happen can be challenging.
Up to a third of projects backed by the Foundation involve artificial intelligence (AI), so ensuring the impact of this research is crucial. “AI is different from other technology because it is general-purpose, like electricity, and it will affect everyone through societal changes,” says Oksanen. He is also a member of FCAI’s Industry Advisory Group (IAG), which brings a business perspective into research and advises on knowledge transfer, use cases and priorities for AI in industry, and collaborative opportunities. “The dialogue is actually mutually beneficial—IAG members get a view into the latest research while FCAI has adopted some of the group’s suggestions, including commenting on ongoing Finnish and EU legislation on AI.”
There is no silver bullet to achieving research impact or indeed measuring this impact. Good intentions, openness and genuine conversations are good places to start, says Oksanen, because these can speed up knowledge transfer through shared context. “Creating active knowledge on both sides helps it sink in better cognitively, too,” he observes. “Cooperative projects, where everyone is sitting at the same table asking questions, is also more efficient than writing an article and having someone find it three or four years later when the information is out of date. Doing things together imparts tacit knowledge too—the methods, tools and processes used in problem solving,” says Oksanen. “There are unexpected returns from doing things together.”
In the academic world, impact may be measured by the number of publications, scores like the h-index or through peer reviews. Demonstrating societal impact is harder, but Oksanen believes collaboration itself is an important benchmark. “Industrial partnerships themselves are valuable because they draw in people and develop shared competencies. Marketable products may be years down the road, but the creation of jobs and the ways that learning and problem-solving evolve through cooperation, those are tangible now.”
Oksanen observes that impact may also depend on personalities and personal motivations. A researcher may pursue an industrial job because it offers a wider audience for their work; for example, their algorithm could be distributed into millions of phones. But not everyone has to work at this interface, says Oksanen. “It’s okay for researchers to focus on science, but we do need those who want to see impact and drive knowledge transfer or create applications.” The personalities and skillsets of a team need to reflect these different priorities, and Oksanen encourages those building research teams to actively consider diversity.
FCAI is backed by multidisciplinary organizations like Aalto University, which give it an edge when it comes to finding partners. “Universities in Finland have invested in facilitating industrial cooperation, and FCAI’s Industry Advisory Group is one of these channels to find information and contacts. There should be even more training from universities on how to start a business, collaborate with industry or transfer intellectual property and knowledge from university to business,” says Oksanen.
Impact can also be achieved through reflection. “I’m glad the pace of AI development has slowed a little because it gives time to think and learn how to apply the strengths and consequences of AI and control them,” says Oksanen. “In addition to the hard tech of machines, models and software, we need consideration for societal effects and legislation. It’s great that FCAI has proactively given input in these areas. Impact is also considering what is the desired state 20 years from now.”
To contact FCAI’s Industry Advisory Group, email:
Heikki Ailisto, FCAI Industry & Society Program lead and Research Professor at VTT
heikki.ailisto at vtt.fi