Two ADAPT Centre researchers at Trinity College Dublin have been awarded highly competitive fellowships as part of the Research Ireland Industry Research, Development, and Innovation Fellowship (IRDIF) Programme, which was announced yesterday by Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, James Lawless TD.
The programme, with a total investment of €2.5 million, funds 28 fellowships across 22 industry partners, advancing research in key areas such as AI for computational safety, sustainable materials, and medical innovation. ADAPT researchers Dr Beyza Yaman and Dr Dipto Barman have been selected to work on cutting-edge AI projects in collaboration with leading industry partners.
Dr Beyza Yaman’s project, Leveraging Knowledge Graphs for Autonomous Network Telecommunications Systems, will be conducted in partnership with Huawei Technologies (Ireland), receiving €108,266.50 in funding. This research aims to improve the efficiency and intelligence of network telecommunications systems by leveraging structured knowledge representation and AI-driven automation.
Dr Dipto Barman will focus on Adaptive and Integrated AI Safety Mechanisms for Large Language Models in Enterprise Applications, working alongside Workday, with funding of €89,074.07. His research will contribute to making AI systems more reliable and transparent by developing integrated safety mechanisms tailored for enterprise-level applications.
Minister Lawless praised the initiative, stating: “The Research Ireland Industry Research, Development, and Innovation Fellowship Programme is an excellent example of how academia and industry can collaborate to tackle real-world challenges. These fellowships will drive impactful solutions and strengthen Ireland’s position as a leader in research and innovation.”
Celine Fitzgerald, Interim CEO of Research Ireland, also emphasised the importance of these partnerships: “We are delighted to support these new collaborations. The IRDIF Programme ensures that researchers gain vital industry experience while addressing key sectoral challenges. The contributions of researchers from centres like ADAPT demonstrate how academic excellence can directly translate into industry impact.”
The fellowships, which span between 12 to 24 months, will allow researchers to gain industry experience while applying their expertise to pressing technological and societal challenges. The inclusion of ADAPT researchers in this programme highlights the centre’s leadership in advancing AI research with direct industry applications.
