INVEST Winter School 2025: AI-enabled early innovation
Winter School
Course name: INVEST Winter School 2025: AI-enabled early innovation
When: 27.1.-28.2.2025
- Preliminary phase (online) 27.1.-20.2.2025.
- Onsite phase 22.-28.2.2025 (including Saturday and Sunday)
Where: Online and in Nurmes and Joensuu, Finland
Credits: 3 ECTS Language: English
Field of study: Open to all disciplines
This unique course focuses on how Artificial Intelligence (AI) fuels early-stage innovation, all set in the inspiring environment of North Karelia.
Building upon the work of local key innovators, you’ll develop new products and services. This course, perfect for Bachelor and Master level students, blends online and onsite learning phases,
collaborative teamwork, and hands-on projects with real-world applications in a Finnish winter setting.
After completing this course, you will understand how to use AI in early-stage innovation. You will learn how to assess your skills, values, and resources, and apply these in developing business ideas. You will be able to work in a team to create and refine new product or service concepts, using AI and structured problem-solving methods.
Prerequisites
- Degree students in INVEST partner institutions,English language level B2
- BSc students: completed at least two years of studies by the end of 2024
- MSc students: any year of study
How to apply
- Follow the link and fill the student registration form with all required data.
- Make sure to include your motivation letter which should include at least your motivation for taking the course and how you plan to utilize the information you will gain from the course.
- After submittion you will receive a verification email. Verify your email and your registration ticket will get forwarded to your university officer for review.
A student-centered approach combined with interaction with real-world stakeholders.
- 25 hours
- Presenting yourselves online, watching recorded lectures, designing the evening activity
- Group work
A student-centered approach combined with interaction with real-world stakeholders.
- 56 hours
- Applying early innovation process focusing on local key innovator companies
- Onsite phase includes workshops, exams, coaching, excursions, presentation of results and social activities
Course Description
Competences
1. Entrepreneurial competences
2. Research and problem-solving competences
3. Transdisciplinary competences
4. Communication and social interaction competences
5. Intercultural competence field, including cultural awareness, multilingual and internationalisation
6. Competences on self-managing, personal development, intrapersonal skills, digitalisation (including Artificial intelligence)
7. Transversal competences
8. Innovation skills
Learning outcomes
After completing this course, you will understand how to use artificial intelligence in early-stage innovation. You will learn how to assess your skills, values, and resources, and apply these in developing business ideas. You will be able to work in a team to create and refine new product or service concepts, using AI and structured problem-solving methods.
You will be able to generate, evaluate, and improve innovative ideas by working with others and considering customer needs and competitive insights. Additionally, you will be skilled in explaining the unique value of your ideas, creating value propositions, and defining early prototypes.
Content
1. AI’s potential for innovation
2. Evolution of technology and the economy
3. Early innovation process
4. Customer need and competitive advantage
5. Effective communication of business ideas
Rating scale
The course is evaluated on a scale of 0-5, where 5 is excellent, 1 is satisfactory and 0 is failed. The evaluation of the course is based on the approved completion of all assignments:
Preliminary assignment (15%), individual exams (35%), documentation of the work (30%), pitching (20%).
To pass the course, you will have to complete all assignments.
Active participation during the onsite phase can increase the assessment.
Examination
- Assessment of preliminary group assignment
- Multiple choice test
- Assessment of documentation and pitching
- Continuous assessment
Additional information
The course is part of the INVEST 2.0 (INnoVations of REgional Sustainability: European UniversiTy Alliance) project funded by Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union.
The teaching language is English. Participating in the course is considered as consent to participate in the research carried out in the project. Assignments, online discussions and other material produced during the course can be used as research material. The identities of the participants cannot be identified from the research reports. Part of the course assignments can be published.