New SDU professor receives DKK 6 million for sustainable AI

Professor Aparna Varde from the University of Southern Denmark has been awarded a DKK 6 million research grant from the Novo Nordisk Foundation to advance research into sustainable artificial intelligence.

Varde conducts her research at the SDU Centre for Software Technology in Vejle, where the grant will support the development of the centre’s Intelligent Systems Laboratory.

The funding will also finance the employment of one PhD candidate and one postdoctoral researcher, who will work with her on the project.

- One of the major challenges today is that training advanced AI models requires enormous amounts of energy, says Aparna Varde.

- It can require roughly as much energy as five hybrid cars consume during their entire lifetime to train a single large AI model. That is why we are investigating methods that can make AI both more efficient and more sustainable.

Making AI greener and more accessible

The research project focuses on developing AI systems that can be trained using less data and fewer computational resources, while maintaining strong performance.

One approach is to combine machine learning with expert knowledge – for example, from medical professionals – so that the systems do not need to learn everything from extensive datasets.

This can reduce energy consumption while also making AI solutions more accessible.

- If we can make AI models less complex, they also become more cost-effective and easier to use. That can help make advanced AI solutions accessible to many more people, says Aparna Varde.

The research also explores explainable AI, in which systems are designed to explain why they arrive at a particular conclusion.

This is particularly important in areas such as healthcare, where doctors must be able to understand and trust the recommendations produced by AI systems.

Supporting a new AI laboratory in Vejle

The grant will also contribute to the development of the Intelligent Systems Laboratory at the SDU Centre for Software Technology.

Here, the new PhD candidate and postdoctoral researcher will collaborate with Aparna Varde to develop new approaches to sustainable AI.

- The grant allows us to attract an excellent PhD candidate and a postdoctoral researcher who can contribute to the development of our Intelligent Systems Laboratory, she says.

A strong start at SDU

Aparna Varde joined SDU as a professor in September 2025 after working in the United States. Receiving the grant, therefore, also carries personal significance.

- It is the first grant I applied for after joining SDU, and receiving it is a delightful feeling. It shows that the research contributions we hope to make here are recognised and valued, she says.

She also emphasises that the project aligns well with the foundation’s focus on both green transition and global health.

- I am very pleased that the foundation supports research that contributes both to sustainability and to making health technologies more accessible, says Aparna Varde.