Unprecedented interest in Lund University’s recruitment – LTH welcomes AI researcher

All told, the initiative means that 45 researchers will begin their assignments at Lund University in the spring of 2026.

Academic freedom attracts

“It’s interesting to look more closely at what has attracted the researchers. Besides the University’s good reputation, many regard Lund and Sweden as a model example of a well-functioning democracy with strong academic freedom and an open and equal society,” says Erik Renström, Vice-Chancellor of Lund University, in a press release from the university.“

The recruited researchers come from higher education institutions such as Harvard University, the University of Oxford, the Humbold University of Berlin, ETH Zürich and the University of Cambridge. The high number of applicants and quality of the applications means that Lund University has recruited significantly more researchers than planned.

“We chose to move forward with more than we originally planned as a response to the exceptionally strong field of applicants that included many high-quality applications and very interesting collaboration partners for Lund University,“ says Erik Renström, says Erik Renström.

AI-researcher from Cambridge to LTH

Danqing Shi comes most recently from the University of Cambridge. His research focuses on the interaction between humans and AI.

In an interview with Lund University, Danqing Shi explains why he chose to apply to Lund in particular.

Why did you choose Lund University?
“Lund University is the top-ranked Nordic institution in QS 2026, and an innovation hub with a history of developing many transformative technologies, such as Bluetooth and Qlik visualization software, turning research into real-world impact.

The university’s mission is to understand, explain, and improve our world and the human condition. This vision closely aligns with my own research goal.“

Can you describe your current research?
“I am a human-computer interaction researcher. My research focuses on how AI can better understand humans, with the ultimate goal of aligning AI to humans.

I investigate how people interact with computers and, more recently, with AI. I build models to simulate human behaviors during these interactions.

Additionally, I build user interfaces and visualizations that assist human-AI alignment.“

What will be your main research focus during your time at Lund University?
“At Lund University, I will continue my research on human-AI interaction.

The main question I want to answer is: how can we design AI systems that truly understand and cooperate with humans?

My research will focus on understanding humans, explaining human behavior, and designing user interfaces and visualizations that can improve the human experience with AI.“

Danqing Shi comes most recently from the University of Cambridge. His research focuses on the interaction between humans and AI.