Generative AI Pioneers: Exploring and Developing Innovation Capabilities

The rapid development of digital technology has fundamentally transformed industries and work environments. Organizations have heavily invested in digital transformation and integrated artificial intelligence, automation, and data-driven decision-making into their operations. While much is already known about the drivers and impacts of digital transformation in general, as well as their effects on corporate innovation activities, the emergence of generative artificial intelligence (GAI) represents a fundamental shift that offers new, even revolutionary opportunities for managing innovation activities.

This project is driven by the need to broadly enhance the understanding and skills of corporate management and staff on how GAI can be utilized in product development and the innovation process, as well as in creating innovations. The focus is on how AI can be used to create something new. The aim of the research project is to investigate from the perspective of pioneers how GAI can be utilized in product development and innovation activities, and what kind of capabilities and leadership it requires.

The project will produce recommendations and tools to support business development, growth, and management. The purpose is to increase understanding of the current use of generative artificial intelligence and new opportunities in product development and innovation activities. The project will study the advanced practices of pioneering organizations in Finland and abroad and use them as inspiration and further application for Finnish companies, as well as produce new scientific understanding of the utilization of GAI in innovation activities.

The identified and developed methods and practices, as well as the experiences gained from them, will be used to complement the theoretical understanding related to the development of working life. The results will be refined into tools and frameworks for companies to use. The project will also examine ethical issues related to AI.

How to integrate Generative AI into innovation processes? This project addresses the question both on an individual and organizational level, with a focus on the leadership issues implicated and the anticipated futures involved. We are seeking to understand the benefits and challenges and how different companies can best leverage generative AI in their innovation processes.