The ATK-instituutti säätiö (ICT institute foundation) annually awards the ProICT Award for particularly meritorious ICT work.
Umair Ali Khan, Senior Researcher at Haaga-Helia, has been awarded the ProICT Award. The prize amounts to 5,000 euros.
The grounds for the award granted by ATK-instituutti are as follows:
"Senior Researcher Umair Ali Khan, PhD, has, in a short time, helped raise Haaga-Helia's AI profile with his meritorious activities. Umair can rightly be called a driving force in many of Haaga-Helia's projects focusing on artificial intelligence.
Umair's specific competencies include applied AI, machine learning and generative artificial intelligence, natural language processing (NLP), and ethical and responsible artificial intelligence.
Umair's current work focuses on practical applications of AI, including retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), multimodal AI agents, and knowledge extraction & processing using large language models (LLMs).
For example, in the Finnish AI Region (FAIR) project, Umair has promoted the introduction of artificial intelligence in dozens of companies and built numerous specific AI tools for the use of Haaga-Helia and its project partners.
Umair is a prolific writer (in 2025 alone, he has written 15 publications) and has developed open-source tools.
Beyond his technical expertise, Umair is a very dedicated and collaborative colleague. He advises young coders on the use of artificial intelligence in programming and helps teachers apply artificial intelligence tools."
At the moment, Umair’s work focuses on deep learning, computer vision, LLMs, RAG, MCP*, AI agents, and knowledge extraction & processing using LLMs.
Umair specializes in establishing research networks and collaborating effectively with diverse research teams, industry stakeholders, and government agencies across Europe and beyond. In the last couple of years, he has been part of several successful grant applications.
– I consider myself a promoter of science and technology. I’m passionate about democratizing AI knowledge and ensuring responsible AI adoption in business and education sectors, Umair Ali Khan says.
The recipient of the ProICT Award can be a student, teacher or other employee or group. The awardee must work within the sphere of influence of Haaga-Helia or Helsinki Business College.
