HosByte: Smart Omnichannel Sales in the Hospitality Industry Digital platforms, artificial intelligence, service robotics, and XR technologies offer new opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the hospitality industry to reach customers and enhance their operations. The goal of the HosByte project is to develop a series of prototypes for omnichannel sales, connect hospitality SMEs with technology startups, and develop instructional materials on implementing digitalization projects in Finland and beyond.
The project is co-funded by the European Union between 09/2024-08/2026. Total funding: €275 974. Read more here.
RoboBoss: Algorithmic Management of Knowledge Workers Modern work environments have increasingly become places of digital measurement and automated decision-making. The RoboBoss-project explores worker and manager attitudes towards algorithmic management in Finland through a multi-method approach including a nationwide survey, a Delphi futures panel, and a series of company-specific research and development workshops.
The project is co-funded by the Finnish Work Environment Fund between 03/2025-09/2026. Total funding: 205 728€. Read more here.
Intelligent Automation in Service Business Automation poses to change the service sector. To that end, Aarni Tuomi's research has explored the applications and implications of service robots, intelligent assistants, deepfakes and other AI-generated content in various service business contexts. He has for example co-developed AI Ethics Guidelines for startups operating in and building AI products for the service sector.
During summer 2023 Aarni joined the University of Surrey as a Visiting Research Fellow to explore human-technology teams in the context of service business. The research exchange was funded by the Foundation for Economic Education and Helia-foundation. To continue this line of research, in 2024-2025 Aarni Tuomi joined Wakayama University as a Visiting Fellow.
HomeOpera – Digital Social Cultural Experiences HomeOpera-project aimed to bring cultural experiences, e.g. going to the opera, to elderly peoples’ homes using emerging technology. The project consisted of multiple agile prototypes to explore service concepts and UX design features which foster social interaction and a feeling of togetherness among users of the HomeOpera digital prototypes.
The project was co-funded by the European Union’s Regional Development Fund between 09/2021-08/2023. Total funding: €223 576. Read more here.
Algorithmic Management and Professional Growth in Platform Economy This project explored the notion of algorithmic management, specifically AI-driven task allocation and control mechanisms on digital labour platforms and the implications of these practices on platform workers day-to-day experience and professional growth. The project also looked at new work and business opportunities brought about by the platformisation of service business.
The project was co-funded by the Finnish Work Environment Fund between 03/2022-12/2023. Total funding: €39 754. Read more here.