Kai Nordlund is professor of computational materials physics and vice rector of the University of Helsinki. As vice rector, he puts particular emphasis on high-quality education, taking AI methods widely but responsibly into use in education and university operations, and promotion of highest level science. Also multilinguality and ensuring equal opportunities for foreign staff and students are close to his heart. He received his PhD in physics in 1995 at the University of Helsinki, and after postdoc positions at the University of Illinois and Academy of Finland was appointed full professor at his alma mater in 2003. In addition to being vice rector, he is member of a 30-person research group doing quantum mechanical, classical and mesoscale atomistic simulations of radiation and other non-equilibrium effects in all classes of materials. As of 2026, he has published more than 600 refereed publications, his Web of Science h-index is 80 or more, and his google scholar h-index is 100 or more.