Mid Sweden University and the EU invest just over SEK 16 million in new AI lab
Mid Sweden University is investing SEK 16.6 million in a new AI lab to strengthen both the research environment and AI education at the university. The initiative has been granted SEK 6.6 million in support from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).
"Through this investment, we are creating a foundation for the next generation of AI education and research. It is a strategic investment in our future skills supply, and at the same time we strengthen our ability to collaborate with the region's companies in AI," says Mattias O'Nils, professor at Mid Sweden University and project manager for DigiLab.
The new lab environment, DigiLab, will be a strategic resource for the university's investment in AI and digital transformation – not least in connection with the start of the new degree programmes "Automation with AI" and "Applied AI" in the autumn semester of 2025. The new infrastructure provides students with hands-on experience with modern AI technologies in realistic environments, while enabling researchers to take on more complex and computationally intensive challenges in AI.
"With our new lab environment, we will have greater opportunities to support the region's companies in their AI transition. An experimental arena for research and education in AI is exactly what is needed to meet the growing need for skills," says Mattias O'Nils.
The new AI lab is built around several powerful GPU servers integrated with resources for edge computing. The system is completely on-premise and independent of external cloud services. All hardware – from computing power and GPUs to memory and storage resources – is located within Mid Sweden University's own infrastructure.
"Now we have access to powerful AI resources locally, which complements the national infrastructures. The proximity to both researchers and companies means that we can shorten development cycles, while at the same time we can work with edge computing and handle data with higher demands on security and privacy, and that feels very relevant in these times," says Mattias O'Nils.
GDM Konsult AB, based in Sundsvall, is the project's central technical partner. The company is responsible for configuring the new infrastructure and developing user support for both researchers and external partners. The construction of the new lab environment will begin in the autumn and will be integrated into the STC (Sensible Things that Communicate) research centre.
"Our new AI lab will also be the first step towards a larger research lab for STC's activities in AI and IoT. In the long term, we want to build a completely new building where we gather all lab activities for advanced research, education and collaboration between academia, industry and the public sector – something that can become a regional node for the digital technology of the future," says Mattias O'Nils.
Contact person:
Mattias O'Nils, professor at Mid Sweden University and project manager for DigiLab, mattias.onils@miun.se, 010-142 87 80
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