'Searching for a modern Wonder of the World'

Pitches from researchers

Jenny van Doorn: ''Moi'' or ''Hi''? The Gronings-speaking robot
Teaching a robot to speak Gronings is comparatively easy, but understanding Gronings is more difficult, UG professor Van Doorn told in her pitch. Due to the large staff shortage in healthcare, robots can offer a solution. However, patients and staff are not always enthusiastic about robots. A robot that speaks the regional language could help. 'Make speech technology regional' was therefore the motto of Van Doorn's pitch.

Hedderik van Rijn: MemoryLab & MemoryLab Health: How Cognitive AI improves education and Healthcare, in a highly diverse region such as the North of the Netherlands
Using cognitive AI, UG professor Van Rijn and his team developed two startups. The most renowned is MemoryLab (the international name of SlimStampen). The company uses knowledge of the human brain to develop smart technology which helps schoolchildren learn facts more efficiently.

Paris Avgeriou: Engineering Doctorate on Autonomous Systems
At the UG, students can take a bachelor's or master's degree in engineering. Recently, it is possible to take a two-year Engineering Doctorate on Autonomous Systems at the university. The students will work for the high-tech companies of the Innovation Cluster Drachten (ICD), which will boost innovation in the region.

Tommaso Caselli: GroNLP's research
In his pitch, Tommaso Caselli talked about the Computational Linguistics and Natural Language Processing group of the Faculty of Arts, which includes research on the relationship between language and AI. Recently, consultancy firm McKinsey calculated the gigantic economic potential of generative AI. This offers great opportunities for Nij Begun, Caselli stressed.

Peter Merx: Public engagement made easy
According to Peter Merx, working at the UG's Centre for Information Technology (CIT), it is crucial for scientists to engage with a wide audience. He highlighted the opportunities that exist within the UG, and within CIT in particular, for 'public engagement'.

Jeanne Mifsud Bonnici: Kick-back organised crime
We can dream up all kinds of innovations, but if an economy is corrupted by organised crime, few of these developments will come to fruition, and young people will be led astray. That was emphasised by UG professor of European technology law and human rights, Jeanne Mifsud Bonnici.

Ajay Kottapalli: Enhancing Vital Health Monitoring: Wearable Sensor Technology
In his pitch, Kottapalli gave several examples of wearable sensor technology, partly developed within the RUG. These included the successful startup Sencilia, where sensors are made that can make the infusion of medication much more accurate and safe.  

Bayu Jayawardhana: Center for Autonomous Systems
Jayawardhana shared the plans for the Center for Autonomous Systems (CAS). He told about his vision for a large-scale innovation space in the North for knowledge institutions, companies and government organisations in the field of autonomous systems, comparable to Wetsus (Water Campus Leeuwarden).

Celestine Lawrence: Large Spectral Model: a step towards dog-level intelligence for sensing trace chemicals in the air
AI systems like ChatGPT are trained with large amounts of data in the form of texts. But what if we could build AI systems that use the unique intelligence of, say, dogs? This could yield major innovations in the health, agriculture and security sectors, Lawrence told in his pitch.

Nicolai Fabian: A systems perspective on technological change: What we can learn from the Ruhr area and IT failures
The Ruhr area has traditionally been of great economic importance for Germany's coal mining and steel industries. Recently, however, declining heavy industry is causing major problems. The government is trying to turn the tide with investments in the IT sector, but this is not turning out well, according to Fabian. What can we in Groningen learn from the German example? That was the core of Fabian's pitch.

Milad Abbasiharofteh: Navigating a New Beginning with a Twin Transition and Problem-Solution Alignments
Groningen is the centre for hydrogen in Europe. However, Abbasiharofteh's research shows that hardly any 'trademarks' have been requested in the field of hydrogen in this region. How can this be explained and what can we do about it? Abbasiharofteh wants to tackle the problem with the help of AI.

Ronald Stolk: National large-scale AI facility
In his pitch, Stolk cited mayor Schuiling's words. A large-scale AI facility should rise in Groningen, as a 'new modern Wonder of the World'. Current AI technology originates mainly from the US, developed by commercial companies. The national centre of expertise will allow us to develop our own technology in Europe, Stolk argued.