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News

• 2025-04-30

  Research contributes to understanding venture builders

  John-Erik Hassel recently completed his PhD in business administration at Karlstad Business School and The Service Research Center (CTF) and has done research on venture builders.

  John-Erik Hassel, tell us about your research

  – My research is about understanding a relatively new actor in entrepreneurial ecosystems called venture builders and how they can be understood in a larger context. Venture builders are actors who use a structured process to establish startups one after the other in collaboration with individual entrepreneurs.

• 2025-04-29

  Open satellite image archives to boost sustainable development goal

  A new study in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggests that commercial satellite image archives should be opened to enhance research on the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Access to very-high-resolution (VHR) satellite imagery is crucial for monitoring smallholder farms, particularly in low- and middle-income countries where such farming is vital for food security.

  "Smallholder farmers, who often cultivate less than two hectares of land, produce more than 30%of the world’s food.Yet their farming practices and productivity are poorly documented, partly due to the lack of accessible VHR satellite images, says Felicia O. Akinyemi, Associate Professor of Geomatics at Karlstad University. These images, which can cost up to 2 euros per square kilometer, are often too expensive for research institutions working in these regions."

• 2025-04-25

  Limited access when the bus stop is rebuilt

  The bus stop at the university is to be rebuilt and work will begin in May. During the work, the roads between the roundabouts north and south of the bus stop are closed to car traffic. The reconstruction is expected to last until the end of August.

  The reconstruction is part of Karlstad Municipality's work to extend the Karlstadsstråket express bus line between Ruds bytesplats and Välsvikens station, via Kronoparken and Karlstad University.

  During the reconstruction of the bus stop at the university, it will be closed to car traffic between the two roundabouts north and south of the bus platform when the stop is rebuilt. Only public transport, emergency services and goods transport can pass, other traffic will be redirected according to signs on site.

• 2025-04-24

  New Study Reveals How AI Search Engines Reshape Access to Political News Across Languages

  Researchers from Karlstad University explored how generative AI search engines, such as Microsoft Copilot, are transforming political news retrieval - and with it, the global flow of information.

  The study "Sourcing behavior and the role of news media in AI-powered search engines in the digital media ecosystem: Comparing political news retrieval across five languages" was published in the journal Telecommunications Policy and is co-authored by Professor Cornelia Brantner, Professor Michael Karlsson, and Joanne Kuai.

• 2025-04-23

  Research at Karlstad Business School unveil the role of technology in modern auditing

  Lazarus Fotoh, newly graduated doctor of business administration at Karlstad Business School, tell us what you have done in your research.
  – Considering that the impact of technology on auditing is still unclear, my research explores and helps improve our understanding of how both advanced and less advanced technologies are changing audits and the way they are carried out. I also looked into why, despite the growing attention given to advanced technologies, their adoption in auditing remains slow.

  Why did this interest you?

• 2025-04-22

  Increase in number of applicants for Karlstad University – again

  The number of programme applicants has increased by 13 per cent for the autumn semester of 2025. There is also a 12 per cent increase in first choice applicants.

  The increase is largely explained by three of the new study programmes: the Biomedical Scientist Programme, the Master Programme in Political Science – Psychological Defense and Disinformation, and Artificial Intelligence – Bachelor Programme in Computer Science.

  – The application numbers show that people understand the importance of AI and machine learning and want to be part of shaping our future, says Matthias Beckerle, programme coordinator for the AI programme.