Applied AI, LLMs, AI Agents, Machine Learning, NLP, Computer Vision
Umair Ali Khan, Ph.D.
Senior AI Researcher & AI Consultant
Helping organizations turn AI research into production-ready business value through strategy, responsible adoption, proof-of-concepts, and applied research.
Executive Summary
Senior AI researcher and consultant with a Ph.D. in Information Technology and more than two decades of experience spanning applied AI, machine learning, NLP, generative AI, embedded systems, academia, and industry collaboration.
Currently at Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences, advising organizations through the Finnish AI Region (FAIR) project while leading research on LLMs, AI agents, structured knowledge extraction, and enterprise AI adoption.
As an AI consultant, I support organizations across the full AI adoption journey:
Key Strengths
AI Strategy
Roadmaps, business value assessment, AI readiness, capability building, and adoption planning.
LLMs & AI Agents
Generative AI, RAG systems, agentic workflows, structured extraction, and enterprise knowledge tools.
Applied Research
Peer-reviewed research translated into practical solutions for organizations and public-sector initiatives.
AI Governance
Responsible AI, ethical adoption, compliance awareness, and organizational decision frameworks.
Funding & Projects
Grant writing, EU and regional project management, stakeholder coordination, and research leadership.
Solution Development
Proof-of-concepts, MVPs, AI/ML pipelines, model evaluation, and full-stack AI prototypes.
Technical Expertise
AI/ML
Model building, fine-tuning, retraining, deployment, evaluation, testing, and optimization across NLP, image processing, and computer vision.
Generative AI
LLMs, RAG, AI agents, MCP, LangChain, LlamaIndex, LangGraph, OpenAI SDK, Claude SDK.
Programming
Python, C/C++, MATLAB, CUDA C, TensorFlow, Keras, PyTorch, scikit-learn.
Full Stack
Python + FastAPI, React + Vite, REST APIs, cloud deployment, and MLOps workflows.
AI Consultanty & Industry Impact
AI Consultant
Finnish AI Region (FAIR) Project | Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences
- Advised 150+ companies on AI use case selection, business value assessment, successful AI implementation, prioritizing high-return initiatives, and de-risking adoption decisions.
- Conducted AI needs analyses and maturity assessments that translated organizational readiness into concrete, actionable next steps.
- Delivered AI adoption roadmaps for companies spanning capability building, technology selection, governance, and implementation priorities.
- Guided technical teams on AI/ML models, data strategy, generative AI, RAG systems, AI agents, and regulatory considerations.
- Built proof-of-concepts and MVP-grade AI/ML solutions for 20+ companies that enabled companies to validate ideas and justify investment decisions.
Research & Projects
Senior AI Researcher
Applied AI & Knowledge Systems | Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences
- Lead research on knowledge extraction, access, and generation using LLMs and AI agents.
- Develop generative AI frameworks for enterprise knowledge management and industrial workflow automation.
- Design AI capability assessment models and digital transformation plans.
- Secure and manage R&D projects funded by EU, regional, and international programs.
- Supervise master's and undergraduate theses with industry collaboration and publish peer-reviewed research.
Professional Experience
Professor
QUEST University, Pakistan
Associate Professor
QUEST University, Pakistan
Research Scientist
Fraunhofer IIS, Germany & MTA SZTAKI, Hungary
Assistant Professor / Lecturer
QUEST University, Pakistan
Education
Ph.D. in Information Technology
Alpen-Adria University, Klagenfurt, Austria | 2013
Machine learning, embedded systems, dynamic energy management.
Master in Information Technology
Alpen-Adria University, Klagenfurt, Austria | 2010
Machine learning and optimization.
Bachelor in Computer Systems Engineering
QUEST, Pakistan | 2004
Programming, database design, and embedded systems.
Leadership
Chairman, Artificial Intelligence Department
QUEST University
Chairman, Computer Systems Engineering Department
QUEST University
Director, Research & Publications
QUEST University
Selected Publications
Kudryavtsev, D.; Khan, U.A.; Remes, J.; Kauttonen, J. (2026). From Collaboration to Toolkit: Applying eDSR in a Generative AI Knowledge Management Project.
Design Science Research (DESRIST 2026), Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Springer. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-032-28570-6_23
Alamäki, A.; Khan, U.A.; Lagstedt, A. (2025). Ethical Considerations in the AI Lifecycle for Design, Developing and Adopting AI in Public Sector – the Case of Finland.
International Journal of Information Systems and Project Management, 13(4), Article 2. DOI: 10.12821/ijispm130401
Khan, U.A.; Kudryavtsev, D.; Kauttonen, J. (2025). AI Adoption in Finnish SMEs: Key Findings from AI Consultancy at a European Digital Innovation Hub.
Proc. IEEE 23rd World Symposium on Applied Machine Intelligence and Informatics (SAMI 2025), Stará Lesná, Slovakia, pp. 465–470. DOI: 10.1109/SAMI63904.2025.10883271
Alamäki, A.; Khan, U.A.; Kauttonen, J.; Schlögl, S. (2024). An Experiment of AI-Based Assessment: Perspectives of Learning Preferences, Benefits, Intention, Technology Affinity, and Trust.
Education Sciences, 14(12), Article 1386. DOI: 10.3390/educsci14121386
Khan, U.A.; Xu, Q.; Liu, Y.; Lagstedt, A.; Alamäki, A.; Kauttonen, J. (2024). Exploring Contactless Techniques in Multimodal Emotion Recognition: Insights into Diverse Applications, Challenges, Solutions, and Prospects.
Multimedia Systems, 30(3), Article 115. DOI: 10.1007/s00530-024-01302-2
Khan, U.A.; Martínez-del-Amor, M.Á.; Altowaijri, S.M.; Ahmed, A.; Ur Rahman, A.; Us Sama, N.; Haseeb, K.; Islam, N. (2020). Movie Tags Prediction and Segmentation Using Deep Learning.
IEEE Access, 8, 6071–6086. DOI: 10.1109/ACCESS.2019.2963535