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A research project led by Elena Raviola, professor of design management at HDK-Valand, has been granted 990,000 euros in research funding by the Society of Swedish Literature in Finland. Over a period of four years, the research team will study the tension between openness and security in the use of AI-based surveillance. 

“The project is largely about studying how artificial intelligence and machine learning are being used and developed in surveillance. It’s exciting to look at it from perspectives that aren’t just technical,” says Raviola, “and to see it in the broader social context as well.”

What the researchers primarily want to study are the tensions between the growing demand for security and the idea that the Nordic region is supposed to be the most open society in the world. In this project, they will study how different kinds of international borders work. 

“What we want to study are the borders between Sweden and Norway, which are very long, and the bridge between Sweden and Denmark, as well as several airports,” says Raviola. "These are different kinds of borders, and we expect that they will touch on several different issues. One major issue is going to be that of respect for privacy and private life.” 

It is a big project, and it will address that issue from many different perspectives. The research group includes scholars in the fields of anthropology, design studies, informatics, law, organisation studies, sociology, and science and technology studies. 

“I’m really looking forward to the interdisciplinary collaboration,” says Raviola. “It’s a project that brings together four different departments at the University 91̽�� with two universities in Denmark and one in Norway.”