Arcada takes next step in Ethics and AI research – Roberto V. Zicari new affiliated professor 

Published: 16.04.2021 / Press release

Professor Roberto V. Zicari, founder of the Frankfurt Big Data Lab at Goethe University and leading the Z-Inspection® initiative, becomes one of Arcada’s affiliated professors. With the appointment, Arcada wants to further strengthen its focus on research in artificial intelligence, especially knowledge of ethical issues related to the field. 

Professor Roberto V. Zicari is an internationally recognised expert in the field of Databases and Big Data. He was previously professor of Database and Information Systems (DBIS) at Goethe University where he founded the Frankfurt Big Data Lab. Through his exemplary work in the field, he has also been affiliated with UC Berkley, Politecnico di Milano and IBM Almaden Research Center. He is currently an adjunct professor at Seoul National University and is also the editor of the ODBMS.org web portal and of the ODBMS Industry Watch Blog.  

– Finland is one of most advanced countries in Europe when it comes to use the use of Artificial Intelligence. It is a great honor for me to be affiliated with Arcada. I hope to be able to contribute and help to establish what we call a Mindful Use of AI in practice, says Zicari. 

Currently Professor Zicari is leading the definition of an assessment process to assess trustworthy AI, called Z-Inspection® , together with a team of international experts. The work is centered around ethics in practice and can provide an ethical assessment of how companies employ AI related methods in their software.  

Questions concerning the moral, ethical and political use of new technologies are on the rise. The European Union Commission and Parliament, the United Nations, and the World Economic Forum are currently discussing the need of regulation for the use of AI in our society. Professor Zicari’s research is closely linked to Arcada’s research projects on AI and ethics. 

– Bringing Roberto Zicari to Arcada and to Finland is a tremendous opportunity to establish a trustworthy approach to AI in research, master’s education, and through company collaborations. Roberto has shown great leadership in bringing together a large and diverse team of international multi-disciplinary experts to assess complex technology. His affiliation with Arcada is testament and great recognition of the work we are doing within this field, says Magnus Westerlund, Principal Lecturer in Information Technology and Degree Programme Director in Big Data Analytics at Arcada. 

Zicari is Arcada’s second affiliated professor, after the appointment of Anne Söderlund last year. 

Arcada and Åland UAS launch master's degree programme which responds to the need for more sustainable solutions in the energy industry

Arcada University of Applied Sciences (UAS) and Åland UAS are launching an English-language engineering degree programme at master’s level. The programme focuses on energy automation and sustainability. The one-year master's programme goes by the name Energy Automation Sustainable Engineering (EASE) and has strong connections to the business world.

Press release