Antti Poikola joins the AI Accelerator

HIIT researcher Antti ”Jogi” Poikola has been selected to lead the AI Accelerator, one of the instruments realizing the Finnish AI Strategy (www.tekoalyaika.fi), together with Alexander Törnroth. While working for the AI Accelerator Jogi will still continue part-time working at Aalto University completing his PhD thesis. Jogi is founder of the Open Knowledge Finland association and a leading figure in the Internationally growing MyData movement. He is one of the main organizers of the MyData conference series.

Jogi says that the AI Accelerator is not for businesses taking the first steps towards utilizing AI, but for companies already more advanced. They can then mentor each other and join forces in particular topics of common interest. Jogi’s example is chatbots in Finnish; many companies in different industrial segments would need solutions handling well Finnish text. The idea of the AI Accelerator is really to “be more by working together”. The accelerator process will be designed during this autumn. Companies need to be encouraged to think more boldly. The AI Accelerator is aimed at companies utilizing AI, not directly for companies providing AI solutions, although some matchmaking can be foreseen between utilizers and providers. Jogi expects that some tens of companies will participate in the AI Accelerator. The AI Accelerator is working under the auspices of Technology Industries of Finland, an association represented in the HIIT Board by director Mervi Karikorpi (deputy: director Ville Peltola).