ELLIS Institute Finland opens second call for Principal Investigators – three positions at the University of Turku

In collaboration with universities across Finland, the institute is now recruiting Principal Investigators (PIs) to lead research teams in AI, machine learning (ML) and related fields. This is a unique opportunity for researchers at all career stages to do work with global impact, in a research environment that is one of the best in the world today for AI and ML. Established in 2025, ELLIS Institute Finland is the second institute of ELLIS, the pan-European AI network of excellence.

Finland has cutting-edge computing resources, including the LUMI supercomputer, strong governmental and industrial support for AI and technology, and possibilities to work with companies and across the academia-industry interface. The AI ecosystem is already thriving, thanks to the close-knit cooperation of universities, a long track record of pioneering machine learning research, most recently at the Finnish Center for Artificial Intelligence, and strong ties to the European Laboratory for Learning and Intelligent Systems (ELLIS) network. The selected PIs will become Fellows or Scholars of the ELLIS Society, a distinction of high-caliber scientists advancing the fields of AI and ML.

“ELLIS Institute Finland is a new cornerstone for European AI excellence. It brings together leading scientists and research groups, but equally importantly, it builds bridges between academia, industry and society,” says Samuel Kaski, director of ELLIS Institute Finland and professor at Aalto University. “Finland is becoming the place to be for trailblazing AI research, with the ELLIS research excellence ethos built in from the start.”

This year the institute has grown rapidly: ten leading scholars and rising stars from around the world have been recruited as PIs, industrial research collaborations are taking shape, and a two-day launch event and scientific seminar were held in November 2025. Now the institute is further expanding with a second round of principal investigator recruitments. PIs in the ELLIS Institute will enjoy great academic freedom and will have access to considerable funding for personnel, equipment, and running costs. The positions are faculty roles on the tenure track at participating Finnish universities.

“We are looking forward to welcoming new colleagues who want to build on the existing strengths of the community, for instance in probabilistic modelling and collaborative AI that combines user modelling and ML, AI for science, or establishing a new strength,” says professor Kaski. 

"The University of Turku is well known for its research on large language models and their applications to natural language processing. With the opportunities created by the ELLIS Institute Finland, we are making a significant investment in expanding our machine learning research. We recruited two ELLIS PIs from the institute’s first call last spring and now aim to hire three more. Finland is becoming a powerful player in AI research, and the University of Turku is playing a significant role in that," says the dean of the Faculty of Technology Jaakko Järvi.

Principal Investigator positions at the University of Turku

The University of Turku invites applications for a Professor (full) or tenure track position (Assistant or Associate Professor) in three following fields:

• Embodied Artificial Intelligence
• Artificial Intelligence in Human-Computer Interaction
• Machine Learning in Quantum Sciences

ELLIS Institute PI recruitment is open until January 12, 2026. 

Details and applications at ELLIS Institute pages: 

>> Principal Investigator positions at ELLIS Institute Finland 

Further information: contact@ellisinstitute.fi