Institutionen för neurovetenskap och biomedicinsk teknik
Vi studerar dynamiska funktioner på systemnivå i människans hjärna, sinne och kropp.
Hälsa och välfärd
Vår forskning inom hälsa och välfärd är huvudsakligen inriktad på neurovetenskap och -teknologi, funktionell MRIn, biomedicinsk teknik, bioinformatik och beräkningsmedicin, liksom andra tekniker i samband med hälsa och välfärd samt på ledarskap.
En stor del av forskningen på detta område sker i nära samverkan med Helsingfors universitet och Helsingforsregionens universitetscentralsjukhus. Deras sakkunskap inom medicin och klinisk forskning kompletterar vårt huvudsakligen tekniska betraktelsesätt.
Det finns en stor efterfrågan på innovationer inom områdena hälsa och välfärd. Här vid Aalto-universitetet utvecklas resultaten från grundforskningen till innovationer, tillämpningar och tjänster för slutanvändarna. Forskningen möter alltså samhällets behov.
Vi strävar också efter att medverka i den omfattande förnyelseprocess som Helsingfors och Nylands sjukvårdsdistrikt står inför under de kommande tio åren.
Aaltos Health Platform sammanför våra forskare med externa aktörer för multidisciplinärt samarbete inom hälsa och välfärd.
How does the nervous system enable perception, language, memory and social interaction, and how do these functions change in disease? Aalto researchers investigate these questions through retinal neuroscience, MEG and EEG measurements, MRI, computational and machine-learning models, and targeted brain stimulation such as TMS. Together, these approaches help identify biomarkers, improve diagnosis and treatment, and support the rehabilitation of people with neurological, psychiatric and developmental conditions.
Medical devices make it possible to measure bodily functions, deliver treatment and support rehabilitation in hospitals, clinics and everyday life. At Aalto, researchers develop biosensors, methods for processing physiological signals, ultrasound and medical imaging technologies, patient-specific implants, surgical instruments and rehabilitation robots. Together, this expertise supports point-of-care diagnostics, the development of assistive technologies and health monitoring outside hospitals. Additive manufacturing makes it possible to produce implants and other devices tailored to an individual patient's anatomy.
Materials engineered at the molecular scale can detect disease, deliver drugs and genes to specific targets, and help damaged tissue repair and regenerate. Aalto researchers use DNA nanotechnology, proteins, nanomaterials and bio-based materials to develop biosensors, drug and gene delivery systems, implants, hydrogels and tissue-engineering scaffolds. Applications range from point-of-care diagnostics and regenerative medicine to cancer treatment and wound healing.
At Aalto, fundamental AI research develops alongside applications in health and medicine. Clinical and biomedical questions guide the development of machine-learning methods, Bayesian statistical methods and computational models. Research draws on medical images, biosignals, speech data, molecular data, patient data and population data. The methods are applied in diagnosis, precision medicine, epidemiology and clinical decision support. Generative AI is also used to design candidate drugs, proteins and antibodies.
Electrical Engineering and Automation
Digital health depends not only on what technologies can do, but also on how people experience and use them. Aalto researchers study human-computer interaction, electronic health record systems and eHealth services. They also examine online behaviour, digital work and the effects of technology on well-being. Accessibility, human-centred design and participatory design guide the development of self-care solutions, personal health technologies, social robots, games and virtual environments for different user groups and professionals.
The places where people live, age, work and receive care can support—or undermine—health and well-being. At Aalto, research covers healthcare architecture, participatory urban planning, healthy buildings and indoor environmental quality. Researchers examine how hospital spaces affect care processes. They also study accessible and inclusive housing, ageing at home, active neighbourhoods and restorative green spaces. Research on ventilation, infection risk, thermal conditions and materials examines how buildings affect the health and comfort of their users.
How services, resources, markets and incentives are organised affects patients, professionals and the performance of health systems. At Aalto, three research areas provide complementary perspectives on health and well-being: healthcare operations management, health economics, and workplace well-being. Healthcare operations research examines care pathways, resource allocation, procurement, logistics, hospital productivity and decision analysis. Economic research investigates pharmaceutical markets and regulation, as well as how unemployment and economic inequality affect health. Research on work focuses on meaningful work and on how digitalisation and changing forms of work affect stress, recovery and well-being. Much of this research is carried out with organisations.
Information and Service Management
Collaborate with us
Looking for research expertise, a partner for a joint project, a setting for a pilot, or the right route into Aalto's health and well-being research? Our Key Research Area Manager can help you find the relevant researchers, departments, research environments and other forms of collaboration.
Jussi Nissilä
Key Research Area Manager, Health and well-being, Aalto Networking Platform
Research excellence
Success in highly competitive European and Finnish funding competitions and rare academic distinctions demonstrate the quality of Aalto's health and well-being research. Together, they show how frontier research at Aalto connects with clinical, societal and economic impact.
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RCF Flagships
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BF's Rise to Challenge
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Distinguished Professors
Research Council of Finland's Flagships
The Research Council of Finland's Flagship Programme supports long-term competence clusters that combine high-quality research with close collaboration and economic and societal impact. Aalto is part of three Flagships relevant to health and well-being and coordinates the Finnish Center for Artificial Intelligence (FCAI).
ERC grants fund ambitious frontier research through Europe-wide competition in which scientific excellence is the sole evaluation criterion. Researchers in this key research area hold three active ERC grants.
- Jarno Mäkelä, ERC Starting Grant: Single-molecule visualization of temperature adaptation in sub-cellular dynamics and organization across bacteria
Read more - Anton Kuzyk, ERC Consolidator Grant: Electronically driven DNA-origami-based machines
Read more - Risto Ilmoniemi, ERC Synergy Grant: Connecting to the Networks of the Human Brain (ConnectToBrain)
Read more
Business Finland's Rise to Challenge funding backs bold, large-scale research initiatives that build capabilities for future growth sectors and open long-term paths to societal and commercial use. Two funded projects involving Aalto focus on healthcare AI and imaging.
- Samuel Kaski, FINe-Health Foundry: Nationwide Foundation Health Model, led by Aalto University
Read more - Nuutti Hyvönen & Hanna Renvall, TomoHQ: A New Level of Imaging Technology Precision for Entirely New Application Areas, led by University of Helsinki
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Learn more about the projects of Rise to Challenge 2026 funding round
Notable professors
The researchers below have received a rare national or Aalto academic distinction. Their fields span neuroscience and brain imaging, functional materials and health economics. The President of Finland confers the title of Academician of Science on highly distinguished scientists. No more than 16 Finnish scholars may hold the title at a time. Aalto awards its Distinguished Professor title for exceptional academic merit.
Riitta Hari
Academician of Science, Aalto Distinguished Professor
Human systems neuroscience and brain imaging
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Institutionen för datateknik
cs.aalto.fi
Institutionen för elektroteknik och automation
Institutionen för elektroteknik och automation (förkortat EEA) är ett ekosystem där forskare från olika områden av mikrosystem, elektroteknik och automation jobbar tillsammans för att lösa de allra svåraste problemen
Institutionen för bioprodukter och bioteknik
Institutionen för bioprodukter och bioteknik (Bio2) ligger i framkant vad gäller teknik för skogsprodukter och den senaste bioteknologin.
Verksamheten vid Bio2 leder i slutändan till innovativa produkter och lösningar för tillämpningar inom allt från byggnation och textilier till biomaterial, energi och biomedicin.
Infrastructure
Aalto NeuroImaging (ANI) Infrastructure
ANI research infrastructure houses three functional neuroimaging modalities, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) at Advanced Magnetic Imaging (AMI) Centre, magnetoencephalography (MEG) at MEG Core and Aalto Behavioral Laboratory (ABL).
BioMag Laboratory (extern länk)
BioMag is a brain imaging laboratory at the Helsinki University Hospital co-hosted by Aalto and University of Helsinki.
Science-IT
Science-IT tillhandahåller en infrastruktur för avancerad beräkningsforskning på Aalto-universitetet och samordnas av Högskolan för teknikvetenskaper.
Micronova
Datavägen 3
Health Technology Research Infrastructure
The Health Technology Research Infrastructure consists of 13 laboratories at the Otaniemi campus and is part of the Department of Electrical Engineering and Automation. The laboratories provide high-quality medical technology equipment to several research groups and for teaching purposes in the Health Technology Engineering Programme.