The knowledge accumulated within a construction company is often scattered across people’s memories, emails and project folders. Kristin Kivimäe, Innovation and Technology Manager at Mapri Ehitus, believes artificial intelligence could help bring this knowledge together and make it accessible, so that lessons from earlier projects can inform decisions on the next ones.
Over a quarter of a century, the Estonian Centre for Engineering Pedagogy has helped establish an understanding that engineering education is, at its heart, much more than passing on knowledge. The question is no longer how many formulae or technologies learners know. What matters is how they think, which problems they can solve and what impact their work has on society.
Estonia is well placed in e-health development and has a strong foundation for making better use of health data and technology. Paulin Jürjens, Head of HealthTech at Tehnopol, believes technology can help prevent disease, reduce healthcare professionals’ routine tasks and make care delivery smoother.
A digital state can be fast and open, but that alone is not enough to maintain trust. Külli Taro says Estonia needs stronger foundations for its state and shared agreements on how to bring together democracy, citizen participation and the possibilities of technology.
Estonia has a shortage of engineers, and the problem will become even more acute in the coming years. Universities can train more engineers, but increasing admissions alone is not enough. To turn today’s students into capable engineers in the labour market, universities and businesses need to work more closely as one team.
Estonia’s tap water is high quality and its sewerage systems generally work reliably, but the infrastructure will need major investment in the coming years. Through the VeeFunk study, TalTech researchers will investigate when smaller water systems should be connected and when local solutions should be retained. These choices will affect future water prices, service reliability and crisis preparedness.
“Now I am going to say something many people may disagree with, but Estonia’s economy has done very well,” former Minister of Energy and the Environment Andres Sutt said at TalTech’s Entrepreneurship Day.
A production logistics simulation developed by researchers at TalTech’s Virumaa College helped Layerwood Production, which is building a new wood processing plant in Kohtla-Järve, identify the equipment the factory actually needs. The digital model allowed the company to remove equipment that would have seen little use from its investment plan.
“Our country has let several decades slip by,” says Andres Veske, head of Energiasalv Pakri, of the development of Estonia’s energy sector. Having worked in the field for decades, Veske believes that although the changes in energy have been substantial, many necessary decisions have taken too long.
Estonia cannot compete with the United States or China in the AI race in terms of either funding or computing power. Experts discussing the issue at the autumn seminar of TalTech’s AI Focus Centre recommend looking for Estonia’s strengths elsewhere: a strong digital state, cybersecurity, good education and cooperation. A small country’s success depends on finding the right niches.