Research Chair Program
The NIIN Research Chair Program is a core mechanism for translating research into impact at scale.
Positioned within leading universities and embedded in an industry-led network, Research Chairs bring together research excellence, industry insight and real-world application. Focused on national priority areas such as AI, cybersecurity, health and critical infrastructure, they drive collaborative innovation—from problem definition through to prototyping, testing and deployment.
Through this model, NIIN is strengthening Australia’s innovation capability, accelerating adoption of emerging technologies, and building the skills and partnerships needed for long-term impact.
Research Chairs
Dr Alison Craswell
Digital Health and Ageing
University of the Sunshine Coast, QLD
Cisco Research Chair in Digital Health and Ageing and based at the University of the Sunshine Coast, Dr Craswell will establish the Digital Health Productivity Lab. This Lab is designed to support the uptake of digital technologies, of critical importance to improving the productivity of the healthcare sector. Dr Craswell's is actively engaging in projects investigating automation opportunities in nursing, telemedicine in rural care and improving clinical support coordination post care, with a current research focus on;
- Acute Care of Older Adults
- Digital health and informatics
- Health service evaluation
- Hospitals Models of Care
Prof Wei Xiang
AI and IoT
La Trobe University, VIC
Professor of AI and IoT and Director of the Cisco-La Trobe Centre for AI and IoT, based at La Trobe's Bundoora's campus. Wei is engaged with Innovation Central Melbourne and focuses on the development of R&D Strengths around:
- AI
- IoT
- Data analytics
- Computer vision
- 5G/6G and IoT communications
- AI for cybersecurity
Prof Trish Williams
Digital Health
Flinders University, SA
Professor in Digital Health Systems at Flinders University in South Australia, and Director of the Flinders Digital Health Research Centre and the Cisco-Flinders Digital Health Design Lab. With 40 years of experience in healthcare computing, her research spans:
- Cybersecurity
- Safe Hospital Wireless
- Medical devices
- Patient safety
- Health software safety
- Digital health informatics standards
Prof Marius Portmann
Advanced Networking
The University of Queensland, QLD
Professor in Advanced Networking at the University of Queensland, the Cisco Research Chair in Network Security has a focus on AI-based solutions for securing current and next generation computer networks. Prof. Portmann leads the Centre for Future Networks, supporting the Australian economy to build sovereign digital resiliency and network infrastructure security. Prof. Portmann’s research spans -
- Future Networks
- AI-based Network Security
- Software Defined Networking
- Internet of Things (IoT)
Dr Nadine Ostern
Trusted Retail
Queensland University of Technology, QLD
A thought leader in trust, trust management and trust establishment across retail and logistics, based at Innovation Central Brisbane.
Research will bring together and cover areas such as:
- Advanced manufacturing
- Logistics
- Retail trust
- Consumer engagement
- Security
- Sustainability
- Cyber security
Prof Frank den Hartog
Critical Infrastructure
University of Canberra, ACT
A long track record in industry as well as academia with a focus on the cyber security of critical infrastructures such as telecommunication networks and Industry IoT. Based at Innovation Central Canberra, his current research topics include:
- Zero Trust Architectures
- Physical Layer Security
- Programmable Networks
- Secure Industry 4.0
- Cyber-physical systems
A/Prof Ilaria Barletta
Sustainable Engineering
University of Technology Sydney, NSW
At Innovation Central Sydney and the Faculty of Engineering & IT, Dr Barletta brings expertise in sustainable manufacturing systems, organisational capacity‑building tools such as sustainability‑readiness assessment, and energy policy through her previous advisory role in public policy. Her mission is to advance the environmental, social and economic sustainability of organisations through applied research, digital innovation and industry–government collaboration.
Focus areas include:
- Energy productivity & decarbonisation
- Cyber‑physical production systems
- Green industrial precincts
- Circular practices in product & production development
- Power grids in transition
Specialised Centres
Focused research environments. Real-world outcomes.
NIIN's Specialised Centres are dedicated research and innovation environments that bring together university expertise, industry capability and Cisco technology to address some of Australia's most pressing digital challenges. Each centre is anchored by a Cisco Research Chair and operates with a clear mandate: to translate research into practical, deployable solutions.
Together, they form a nationally connected network of deep capability — spanning health technology, artificial intelligence, IoT, cybersecurity and advanced networking — that gives NIIN partners access to world-class expertise across multiple domains.
RMIT–Cisco Health Transformation Lab
RMIT University, Melbourne
The RMIT–Cisco Health Transformation Lab is a place where health and innovation leaders come to tackle the most complex challenges of health system reform — combining human-centred design, systems thinking and digital technology to reshape how care is conceived and delivered. It operates at the intersection of the human and the technological, providing a practical environment for prototyping, testing and deploying innovations that address real problems in Australia's health system.
The Lab is the coordinating hub of the NIIN Health Alliance and a proven platform for applied innovation at scale. Its work spans digital health prototyping, workforce capability development and connected care research — with a growing focus on AI-powered care models and the secure integration of digital tools across health infrastructure. The Lab's research chair is Professor Vishaal Kishore, Executive Chair, supported by Director Nithya Solomon.
Cisco–Flinders Digital Health Design Lab
Flinders University, Tonsley campus, Adelaide
The Cisco–Flinders Digital Health Design Lab is dedicated to developing practical, scalable digital health solutions by examining how technologies are assembled into clinical and operational capabilities. Based at Flinders University's Tonsley campus — one of Australia's leading innovation precincts — the Lab works at the systems level, helping health organisations understand how digital infrastructure, cybersecurity and medical devices can be integrated into real-world workflows to improve outcomes for patients and clinicians.
The Lab's research spans safe hospital wireless design, medical device security, infrastructure maturity assessment, IoT in health settings, and cybersecurity frameworks for clinical environments. It operates within the Flinders Digital Health Research Centre and maintains a close research relationship with the RMIT–Cisco Health Transformation Lab. The Lab's research chair is Professor Trish Williams, Cisco Chair and Professor of Digital Health Systems.
UniSC Digital Health Productivity Lab
University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland
The UniSC Digital Health Productivity Lab focuses on digital innovation for aged care and healthy ageing — one of Australia's most pressing national challenges. The Lab develops, tests and implements digital health solutions designed to improve outcomes for older adults, drive efficiencies in the care sector, and support a workforce under significant pressure. UniSC is the first regional university in the NIIN, and the Sunshine Coast — with one of the highest proportions of residents aged 65 and over in the country — provides a uniquely relevant environment for this work.
The Lab's research encompasses automation opportunities in nursing and aged care, digital health adoption in older adult care settings, and technology solutions that enable people to live independently for longer. It is connected to other NIIN labs and partners developing related technologies, supporting cross-institutional collaboration across the network. The Lab's research chair is Associate Professor Alison Craswell, Cisco Chair of Digital Health and Ageing.
Cisco–La Trobe Centre for AI and IoT
La Trobe University, Melbourne (Bundoora)
The Cisco–La Trobe Centre for AI and IoT specialises in the convergence of artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things — two technologies that are individually transformative and significantly more powerful in combination. The Centre conducts applied research in federated learning, edge AI, on-device AI, and AI-driven analytics, with practical applications across smart cities, connected infrastructure, sustainability, health and advanced manufacturing.
Co-located with Innovation Central Melbourne at La Trobe's Digital Innovation Hub, the Centre is embedded in an active industry collaboration environment where research moves rapidly from concept to application. It represents La Trobe in the SmartSat CRC and has been instrumental in establishing Australia's AI and IoT research capability, including the development of the country's first accredited IoT engineering honours degree program. The Centre's research chair is Professor Wei Xiang, Cisco Chair of AI and IoT.
UQ Centre for Future Networks
The University of Queensland, Brisbane
The UQ Centre for Future Networks focuses on securing and strengthening the digital networks that underpin Australia's economy, critical infrastructure and national security. The Centre develops AI-driven approaches to network security — building practical tools that detect and respond to cyber threats in real time, and contributing to Australia's sovereign capability in a domain of growing national importance.
The Centre's research spans machine learning for network intrusion detection, edge AI for real-time threat response in software-defined networking environments, and the application of large language models to network security and traffic engineering. This work is directly relevant to organisations and infrastructure operators who depend on secure, resilient and performant digital networks — and connects directly into NIIN's broader Cyber Alliance research agenda. The Centre's research chair is Professor Marius Portmann, UQ–Cisco Chair of Network Security.
Connecting the Network
Each Specialised Centre operates as part of NIIN's integrated ecosystem — connected to Innovation Centrals, research chairs, industry partners and government stakeholders across Australia.
This network model means that expertise developed in one centre can be applied, scaled and deployed across the broader NIIN community, amplifying impact beyond individual institutions.