Role overview
The Faculty of Humanities and the Faculty of Science at the University of Helsinki invite applications for the position of
RESEARCH FELLOW (UNIVERSITY RESEARCHER) OR POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCHER IN THE AREA OF TRUSTWORTHY AI ACROSS LINGUISTIC AND CULTURAL DIVERSITIES
for a fixed term period 1 January 2027 – 31 December 2030.
The Faculty of Humanities and Faculty of Science invite applications for a joint (50%:50%) position as Research Fellow in trustworthy AI across linguistic and cultural diversities within the research action Diversity in Society and Life (DIVSOL). We seek an experienced scholar with expertise in developing artificial intelligence and a demonstrated interest in advancing research methods through interdisciplinary collaboration. We primarily seek to appoint at the Research Fellow level, but Postdoctoral Researcher candidates with strong research experience after doctoral degree will also be considered.
The appointed researcher is expected to contribute, from the perspective of AI methods development, to the interdisciplinary research across two or more thematic areas of DIVSOL (see https://www.helsinki.fi/en/diversity-society-and-life/research for more detailed description of the thematic areas). The position involves methodological development in the context of humanities, especially linguistic and cultural diversities across time and space, AI research in low-resource scenarios (e.g., focusing on minoritized and under-resourced communities), and developing methods for diminishing the digital divide in research and society by developing reliable and trustworthy AI.
The position contributes to advancing methodological innovation through the creative use of machine learning, AI, and other algorithmic techniques. In line with the interdisciplinary and reflexive ethos of DIVSOL, attention to the societal implications of AI is an important dimension of all research.
What you'll work on
The appointed researcher is expected to pursue independent research on methodological innovation in developing and applying AI methods in humanities, typically in collaboration with existing research groups at the university. Relevant research groups include but are not limited to the following: Computational History, Cross-Lingual NLP, Finno-Ugrian Linguistics, Human Sciences – Computing Interaction, Probabilistic Machine Learning Lab, Scientist in the Loop – Automation of Scientific Discovery. Concrete examples of data sources include historical and born-digital records, databases, resources in minoritized languages, and location or mobility data, with a particular interest in combining different data sources. As the data may include sensitive information, attention to ethical and legal issues is required.
In addition to DIVSOL, the appointed researcher participates in the joint activity of the university-wide AI Research Lab that supports the use of AI in scientific research. It will involve roughly ten researchers, three of whom will jointly develop AI in scientific research in the context of DIVSOL. The Lab works in close collaboration with the broader machine learning and AI research community at the university, including software engineers and various support services.
The daily working activities of the appointed researcher will be split between the Faculty of Humanities and the Faculty of Science. The researcher will also contribute to teaching and administrative tasks (up to 5% of their working time annually). It is possible to complete the teaching and administrative tasks in English.