“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.
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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.
Estonia’s e-health system is an international model, but its next leap forward requires higher-quality health data, greater involvement of doctors and evidence of the real benefits of digital solutions, say three European health informatics experts.
Just as we scan our own shopping and book flights and hotels ourselves, healthcare is increasingly moving towards self-service. TalTech Professor Peeter Ross believes people could collect and manage more of their own health data and receive advice before illness develops. Estonia is already taking its first steps in that direction.
Estonia’s maritime sector will increasingly need people with IT, data, legal and other specialist skills alongside seafarers. Yet it is still widely seen as a traditional industry centred on ships and sailing. Participants at WISTA Estonia’s annual seminar concluded that universities, businesses, the state and local authorities must work more closely together to bridge this gap.
Estonia is establishing a nuclear regulator and looking for a potential plant site, although no decision to build a nuclear power plant has been made. A Trialoog debate highlighted several questions that must be answered first: how much small reactors will cost, the price of their electricity, the risk the state would assume, and whether Estonia has enough expertise and people to operate and oversee a plant safely.
Smartwatches collect ever more data about our health, but not every reading can yet be trusted. TalTech researchers are investigating how to make information collected on the wrist usable in healthcare.
The maritime sector needs new employees and leaders, and attracting more women is increasingly discussed. Elpi Petraki, President of WISTA International, the global network of women professionals in maritime, shipping, trade and logistics, believes real change is measured by the roles women attain and their opportunities to influence their organisations. If women remain mainly in support roles, much of their potential goes unused.
Ideally, bathing water quality monitoring should provide people with a quick and reliable answer to a very simple question: is it safe to go swimming today or not? In practice, however, this information often reaches people too late.
One of the most substantial discussions at the defence conference EstMil.tech, co-organised by Tallinn University of Technology, was a panel in which defence experts from different countries and backgrounds examined the military role and potential of artificial intelligence. The question was simple yet sharp: whether – and to what extent – does AI change decision-making on the battlefield?