[Exploring Finland's Innovation Ecosystem] ① Surpassing Nokia's Golden Era... A Startup Paradise

A Small Country with a Population of 5.5 Million
Home to 20 Unicorn Startups
Roughly Ten Times More per Capita Than Korea

Aalto University is located in Espoo, about 20 minutes by car from Helsinki, Finland. On the 22nd (local time), students were assembling satellites by hand on one side of the campus. From selecting components to programming controllers, students handle every step themselves. Jann Praks, Associate Professor of Electronics and Nanoengineering, whom we met here, introduced a startup.

"Metaktik, which manufactures ultra-lightweight antennas applicable to the aerospace and defense industries, succeeded in attracting a $1 million investment just three days after its founding last month." Aalto University students captured the interest of investors at once with a single antenna technology based on thin-film structures.

Finland was once a country concerned about decline. When its "national company" Nokia sold its mobile phone business to Microsoft in 2014, a pillar of the economy was shaken. However, startups have filled the void left by Nokia and have emerged as a new growth engine. Despite having a population of only about 5.5 million—one-tenth that of Korea—this small country boasts 20 unicorns (unlisted startups valued at over 1 trillion won). Compared to Korea, which has 27 unicorns, Finland's ratio per capita is about ten times higher.

According to the Finnish Technology Industries Association and the startup community on the 29th, annual exports from startups reached 10 billion euros (about 17.258 trillion won) last year. This figure achieved the target five years ahead of schedule. By 2030, exports are expected to surpass 20 billion euros (about 34.516 trillion won), a scale that exceeds Nokia's peak revenue.

Finland is also recognized as the European country with the highest venture capital (VC) investment as a percentage of GDP. From 2018 to 2022, the average VC investment relative to GDP was 0.168%, outperforming the UK and Sweden, and maintaining a top-tier investment stability ranking. In 2024 alone, Finland attracted 1.5 billion euros in VC investments.

Industry-academia collaboration is a key reason why Finland has become a startup haven. Formed by the 2010 merger of three universities—Helsinki University of Technology, the School of Economics, and the University of Art and Design—Aalto University has become a cradle for startups. Aalto has supported experimental and practical research that can be directly linked to industry. In particular, the Space Research Institute run by Aalto has gained global recognition by providing an environment for the development and testing of small satellites. The institute is equipped with state-of-the-art testing facilities, clean rooms, dedicated electronics labs, and its own satellite ground station. Two operational scientific satellites also support students’ real-world research.

Associate Professor Praks said, "Our team is currently building small CubeSats, and we are researching very low earth orbit (VLEO) as a new project. Another group is studying space plasma and space science," he added.

Among the promising startups from Aalto University is ICEYE, the world’s largest provider of microsatellite-based synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery. Founded in 2014, ICEYE delivers data in the form of images using SAR technology. Co-founders Rafal Modrzewski and Pekka Laurila started their business after participating in a satellite-building project at the university.

ICEYE’s satellites are lighter and smaller than conventional satellites, and cost only one-tenth as much. Their resolution has improved from 25 cm to the current 16 cm, and the time required to download images has been reduced from several days to under 10 minutes. Since the successful launch of its first satellite in 2018, ICEYE has launched a total of 70 satellites. Over the past year, the company has entered a phase where it launches around 25 satellites annually. The satellites can capture high-definition images regardless of weather conditions, and have even succeeded in capturing images after the Strait of Hormuz was blocked.

During a visit to ICEYE’s headquarters in Espoo, satellite assembly was underway in every part of the production line. Damon Olloman, Vice President in charge of UK and Canada missions at ICEYE, said, "When I joined six years ago, there were about 100 employees; now there are more than 1,000."

ICEYE has sold satellites to several countries, including Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Japan. Last year's revenue exceeded 250 million euros, and the company aims to surpass 1 billion euros by 2027.

Finland also actively invests in early-stage startups. Startups supported by the Finnish Technology Industries Association from the idea stage have grown into leading companies in the quantum hardware field such as Blufors, and IQM, a quantum-related company preparing for a US listing. These companies are supported with donated funds, and the association does not take equity stakes in the startups.

Antti Aarnio, Executive Director of the Finnish Technology Industries Association, said, "We like to invest in ideas that are still in such an early stage that they are not yet ready for formal investment. We believe that world-class innovation begins much earlier than most people think."