Sara was accepted for a highly competitive Defence Innovation Network Industry internship with Australian startup FortifyEdge AI as part of her PhD with the University of Sydney Business School. Her PhD research focuses on behavioural modelling in the NSW transport system to encourage more sustainable travel choices as part of an ARC Linkage grant with Transport for NSW.

At FortifyEdge AI she had the opportunity to work on a fast-paced project with the Singapore Government. Sara worked with interdisciplinary experts including clinical doctors, scientists and engineers to codesign software that gathers biometric data from wearable devices to predict imminent risk.

“When we’re codesigning a product with a client, you’re on the phone to them regularly. We’re developing the timeframe for project delivery in hours or days – weeks at most. I was able to add value to the company in a relatively short period of time.”

“It’s about; ok, what does the client need? How can I make it work in the shortest time possible? How can I bring the cost down? How quickly you produce something and get feedback and rework it? It's very different to academia, but I find both very rewarding.”

A particular highlight was presenting her work to the Singapore Government while in Singapore.

“I was only a month into the internship when I presented a dashboard I created to predict stress and imminent risk to the Singapore Government. I was so honoured to have the opportunity. The process of collaboration with an international client in person, in Singapore, I will never forget it.”

For Sara, there was strong alignment between her internship and her PhD.

“My PhD research is about behavioural modelling. There is an application of AI and statistical modelling on how people move and how they’re travelling that is used to infer what the likely travel demand is. The concepts in the internship project are quite similar, but instead of looking at it from a transport network perspective, we’re taking data at a more personal level to infer stress levels or imminent danger in microseconds, as opposed to years,” she said.

She can already see the impact her work with FortifyEdge has had on her skills as a researcher.

“I am now so much better at analysing and being able to gain insights from my research because I was working with clients at such a rapid pace. Those skills have transferred over to my work on my PhD.”

Another key moment was her trip to Singapore where Sara had the opportunity to work face-to-face with her clients and represent Australia on the global stage as part of the Australian Defence Delegation at the Singapore Airshow. 

“I worked with the clients in person and met some of the emergency response workers we were providing the service for. To be able to gain an immersive understanding of the environment the client is operating in makes you more empathetic to their needs. It helped me to understand what’s important to them and how I could tailor the product to this.

“It was such a privilege to be part of the Australian Defence Delegation and incredible to see so many Australian companies and Australian scientists there who have developed their own innovations. It makes you feel proud that this is an Australian made product that we can sell to other countries.”

Sara and her supervisor, Professor John Nelson, have worked together to ensure that her participation in the internship hasn’t interfered with her progress on her Phd program.

“John has been phenomenal in terms of support throughout my PhD.

"He’s really good at letting me come up with ideas and explore, and If I’m off track, he’ll bring me back. He’s done the same throughout the internship. He understands the value of technical skill development and continued to meet with me and supported me through it. My supervisor at FortifyEdge, Peter, has also been flexible and supportive and made sure the internship hasn’t disrupted my progression.”

When it comes to advice for higher degree by research (HDR) students contemplating an Industry internship, Sarah offers a practical suggestion.

“I would recommend it to anyone, but I think it’s important for an HDR to assess their own situation and bear in mind that the completion of a successful thesis is priority number one.”

The HDR internship has enhanced Sara’s skills as a researcher and given her invaluable  experience of a new industry, and yet she remains truly committed to her chosen field.

“My love for transport has only grown. I am so lucky that this career I chose when I left school at 17 is the career I’m doing my PhD in and have progressed up the ranks at Transport for NSW in,” she said.

“My PhD has been a tangible expression of my passion for transport.”