Finland’s Prime Minister urges Europe to ‘lead, not follow’ on AI at Turku Summit

By Chris Price, Turku, Finland

November 17, 2025

Europe must urgently pivot from follower to leader in the next wave of artificial intelligence development, Prime Minister Petteri Orpo of Finland warned today at the inaugural Turku AI Summit.

Emphasizing that innovation is now a matter of economic and national security, Orpo laid out a bold strategy for Finnish and European competitiveness centered on strategic infrastructure, public-private co-operation, and aggressive talent retention.

“Europe is behind its main global competitors when it comes to innovation. Now it’s time for change. It’s time for Europe’s technological momentum,” Prime Minister Orpo stated. “We must not be known only for our culture, architecture, and museums; we must also be known for our ability to innovate.”

Leading with a confident approach is crucial because, as Orpo explained, “AI isn’t just a tool, it’s becoming the heart of how businesses and societies work. It’s one of the main drivers of competitiveness. And competitiveness is crucial to our security.”

He called for clear leadership, vision, and defined goals to secure Europe’s footing in the global data economy.

Investing in AI Infrastructure and Power

To back up this ambition, Finland is making major investments in AI infrastructure. For example, the government is actively working with a Nokia-led consortium to host one of the proposed AI Gigafactories—large-scale computing hubs designed to drive European AI development.

“We have the know-how, cheap and clean energy, world-class cooling systems and space,” Orpo confirmed, making a compelling case for Finland as the ideal host.

This effort builds on Finland’s existing strengths, such as the Lumi AI Factory. This facility already brings together massive computing power, high-quality data, and top experts to build and test AI models at speed.

The Three Pillars: Talent, Talent, Talent

Beyond hardware, the Prime Minister insisted that the most critical investment remains human capital. When asked what Finland must do to remain competitive in five years, Orpo’s answer was concise: “Talent, talent and talent.”

The government has already taken steps to make Finland a magnet for global experts, including a recently approved measure to lower income taxes by €1.5 billion.

Crucially, this initiative specifically targets specialists moving to Finland from abroad, as well as Finnish experts returning home, offering them a reduced tax rate of 25% for five years. This, Orpo stressed, is a “real incentive” to attract the best AI researchers and engineers.

Peter Sarlin, co-founder and CEO at AMD Silo echoed the need to convert potential into tangible results. “We have strong industrial roots. We have a growing ecosystem,” said Sarlin, who helped create the Turku event. “What matters really now is how we turn that potential into impact, and I believe we do that together.”

Academic Co-operation Takes the Stage

The Turku Summit itself, which Sarlin initially conceptualized as a small idea one year ago, served as the formal inauguration of the Ellis Institute Finland, dedicated to excellence in AI research.

Sarlin highlighted the city of Turku’s unique advantages, noting its dense academic footprint: “It’s amazing. There are about 40,000 students in Turku out of 200,000 citizens.”

This student population, coupled with institutions like the University of Turku, provides a rich pool for innovation and the type of deep public-private cooperation that Orpo champions.

The Prime Minister concluded that while AI development is a “marathon, not a sprint,” the Finnish government is strongly committed to ensuring that ethical principles guide the journey.

“Our values must guide AI development, not the other way around. Fairness, safety and trust are at the core of both Finnish and European Digital policy,” he said, underscoring that AI must serve both people and businesses in line with democratic values.

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