A man with short brown hair and glasses, wearing a checked shirt, is smiling slightly against a plain white background.

Research can take very different paths and directions, says Bengt Ahlgren at RISE

Meet Bengt Ahlgren, Senior Researcher at RISE Research Institutes of Sweden and Associate Director for Testbeds and Data at Digital Futures. Bengt is also a Co-PI of the research project Decision-making in Critical Societal Infrastructures (DEMOCRITUS) at Digital Futures.

Hi Bengt Ahlgren, describe your role at Digital Futures?

– The centre has ambitious goals for demonstrating and evaluating digital solutions together with partners and in societal-scale test-beds.  My role is to pave the way for digital futures researchers and partners to realise these demonstrations and evaluations in collaboration with existing test-bed facilities.

Tell us a bit about your long-time experience in research and what motivates you as a researcher?

– One thing that intrigues me as a researcher is the very different paths and directions research can take.  Sometimes it is straightforward to apply a result in industry or society, but at other times it is a very long and winding road, perhaps via multiple research groups.  The insight is that it is very difficult, if not impossible, to plan for societal impact and that it is important to build research bottom-up, on the ideas of the individual researchers.

Finally, tell us a little bit about yourself! Any research dreams?

– My research since I started as a PhD student has always been experimental and systems-oriented in the field of computer networking and networked applications.  Using this experience, I hope that I can be part of realising at least one societal-scale demonstrator in the context of Digital Futures.

Link to the profile of Bengt Ahlgren

 

More news

Poster with the text In the Belly of AI overlaid on a city slum with rubbish piles; the large letters AI contain blurred faces and binary code, with a cloudy sky above.

Beyond the algorithm: AI Film Festival sparks debate in Stockholm

31/03/2026

A thought-provoking film festival is turning the spotlight on the hidden impacts of artificial intelligence—inviting audiences...

A man with short brown hair and a beard, wearing a blue suit jacket and light blue shirt, smiles at the camera. The background is blurred with soft lights.

Belgioioso awarded prize for smarter infrastructure research

31/03/2026

Giuseppe Belgioioso, Assistant Professor at KTH Royal Institute of Technology and Digital Futures Faculty member, has been...

A group of people sit facing a woman speaking at a lectern in a classroom or conference room, with a man standing nearby and a projection screen behind them.

Advancing Sweden’s AI Future: Insights from the Industry-Academia AI workshop at KTH

30/03/2026

On Thursday, 26 March 2026, leading voices from industry and academia gathered at KTH Royal...

A person holds a plastic cup under a water dispenser, filling it with water. The person is wearing a white shirt and a black wristband. Another person in a pink shirt is visible in the background.

New digital solutions strengthen critical infrastructures – watch the DEMOCRITUS project in action

30/03/2026

A major Swedish research initiative, DEMOCRITUS – Decision-making in Critical Societal Infrastructures, has now been successfully...