The first report on the state of artificial intelligence in the Nordic countries was published today: world-class readiness for artificial intelligence

Finland has the largest number of companies utilizing artificial intelligence in the Nordic countries.

Silo AI, one of Europe’s largest private AI laboratories, today published the first comprehensive market review of the use of artificial intelligence in Nordic countries. The Nordic State of AI report, which will be published annually with the Finnish Artificial Intelligence Center FCAI and other Nordic artificial intelligence organizations, provides a comprehensive overview of the Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, and Danish artificial intelligence markets and how artificial intelligence is utilized in different businesses.

According to the Nordic State of AI report, the Nordic countries are pioneers in the use of artificial intelligence. This is evident from the many statistics and findings in the Nordic State of AI report. Also, according to the Oxford Insight Artificial Intelligence Readiness Index, all four Nordic countries are firmly among the top ten in the world. According to the Nordic State of AI report, about two percent of the world's artificial intelligence professionals are in Nordic countries. 70% of Nordic companies using artificial intelligence plan to recruit artificial intelligence experts over the next six months.

The report utilized publicly available data as well as the views of numerous artificial intelligence experts. The interviewees included university researchers, companies representatives, public administration officials, and investors from the Nordic countries. According to the report, more than 24,000 Nordic companies currently use artificial intelligence in some way. Of these, 4,500 have incorporated artificial intelligence technologies into their own business. Finland has the largest number of companies in the Nordic countries that utilize artificial intelligence in their business.

The state of Nordic artificial intelligence can be summarized as follows:

• The Nordic countries have a common vision for the sustainable use of artificial intelligence to improve people's well-being
• Digitization has progressed at a rapid pace and data is of high quality and readily available
• The well-established artificial intelligence ecosystem in the Nordic countries and local research centers enable collaboration between the private and public sectors and universities - but a common vision for research is still lacking
• There are plenty of AI startups in every country. Finland has the most companies that use artificial intelligence in their business, followed by Sweden and Denmark
• Artificial intelligence is already widely used in large companies - use is also growing in small and medium-sized enterprises
• The amount of investment in artificial intelligence varies considerably between countries, Sweden is generally at the forefront of ICT investment, Finland is the last

Artificial intelligence is widely used in various sectors in the Nordic countries: In Sweden, telecommunications is a strong user of AI whereas, in Denmark, the healthcare sector is leading the way. In Norway, the energy sector is advanced in its use of AI, while in Finland the biggest industries to leverage AI are large export sectors such as the forest and shipbuilding industries. 

“Our report shows that more and more Nordic organizations are using artificial intelligence in their core operations, meaning that companies have incorporated artificial intelligence into their own products and services,” comments Peter Sarlin, CEO of Silo AI. "In this way, Nordic companies will ensure that their products remain competitive."

Finnish companies are active users of artificial intelligence

The largest concentrations of artificial intelligence in the Nordic countries are in Finland and Sweden. As a small country, Finland has a relatively large ecosystem in the sector. In the field of artificial intelligence research, Finland has long been a leading country in the Nordics, and recently Finland has also seen success in commercializing artificial intelligence solutions. More and more Finnish companies have incorporated artificial intelligence into their strategy and have realized that artificial intelligence can enhance the company's business in terms of technology, labor, and business models. However, investment in artificial intelligence has declined in recent years.

"The utilization of artificial intelligence in business and society as a whole is growing at an accelerating pace, and Finland has a good chance of remaining among the pioneers", says Samuel Kaski, a professor at Aalto University and director of the Finnish Center for Artificial Intelligence FCAI. “In the past, significant investments in artificial intelligence were made in Finland, but over the years they have decreased significantly compared to competitors. At the moment, one fear is that we will lag behind as a nation because Finland does not invest at the same level in artificial intelligence research as other countries. ”

In addition to Silo AI, numerous organizations working with artificial intelligence have participated in the preparation of the Nordic State of AI report. Participants: Aalto University and ITP program, AI Sweden, Amesto NextBridge AS, Business Finland, Copenhagen Capacity, Datapult AI Consultancy, Digital Norway, FCAI, Fremtind Insurance, Halmstad University, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Maki.vc, Nordic Ninja, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, and Technology Industry Association

More information

Peter Sarlin, CEO, Silo AI
+358 40 572 7670
peter.sarlin@silo.ai

Materials: 

Download the report on Nordic State of AI: https://silo.ai/nordic-state-of-ai

Press photos

Oxford Index Report: https://www.oxfordinsights.com/government-ai-readiness-index-2020