RESEARCH
MIT’s Living Lab model is coming to Australia’s Adelaide
World leading technology authority, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), is coming to South Australia to collaborate on the development of a Living Lab at Adelaide’s innovation precinct, Lot Fourteen.
This is the first of its kind in Australia, following in the footsteps of New York, Beijing and Istanbul as the proud home of an MIT Living Lab.
“The Living Lab means local researchers will have access to invaluable data to identify how we can drive sustainable population growth, create jobs and strengthen our economy,” South Australia Premier Steven Marshall said on Thursday.
“Furthermore, it will bolster South Australia’s entrepreneurial activity across a range of industries and ensure that this state remains at the forefront of global innovation and enterprise.”
World leading uni @MIT will set up a #DataAnalytics Living Lab at Lot Fourteen, Premier @stevenmarshall announced today. Supported by @BankSA & @OptusEnterprise it will help government, private sector make better decisions #southaustralia #machinelearninghttps://t.co/sUDJjGXkQf
— LotFourteen, Adelaide, Australia (@LotFourteen) July 4, 2019
The prestigious university is teaming up with Australian companies Optus and Bank SA to deliver the project.
Telecom Optus will act as the technology partner, while Bank SA will focus on analysing big data across the public, private and research sectors.
Living Labs are still a relatively new concept and still lacks a definitive definition within innovation circles. Essentially, it contrasts to a traditional laboratory as it operates in a real-life context with a user-centric approach. It provides a real test bed and an experimentation environment where users and producers can co-create innovations. They bring together stakeholders from all aspects of society to learn from each other, whether that be businesses, researchers, authorities, or citizens.
MIT calls its local Living Lab on campus a “test bed for data innovation” where they explore the social implications of big data, weighing up the impacts and benefits with a plethora of new applications.
| Jul 08 | 2 mins readThe university charges itself as leading the efforts to safely develop and use big data, and “demonstrating organisational best practices for collecting and managing information.”
Its latest development in Adelaide will build on this work. It was Adelaide’s “leadership in data analytics and machine learning” that attracted the world’s best university to the South Australian capital, according to MIT Media Arts and Sciences professor Alex Pentland.
MIT’s newest collaboration will feel right at home in Adelaide’s Lot Fourteen. Built on the site of the former Royal Adelaide Hospital, the development is Australia’s first creation and innovation neighbourhood.
It prides itself on being an exceptional startup ecosystem, where government plays an enabling role by funding R&D, accelerating commercialisation and creating the right conditions for entrepreneurs to thrive.
MIT will fit in just fine.
RESEARCH
| Mar 03 | 2 minutes read
