Five Nordic ministers in joint opinion piece: The Nordic Region must be Europe's driving force in the AI race
Stakeholders from the Nordics are now laying the foundation for a Nordic AI Center focused on the responsible development and use of AI. The initiative is co-financed by Nordic Innovation, an agency under the Nordic Council of Ministers.
The Nordic region has the potential to generate significant societal benefits and competitive advantages by improving collaboration on AI, while also addressing major societal challenges. Therefore, AI Sweden, in collaboration with AI Finland and IKT-Norway, has been tasked by Nordic Innovation to develop a proposal for a Nordic AI Center focused on AI application and development.
“One of the recommendations presented by the Nordic Ethical AI Expert Group this spring is to gather Nordic knowledge and resources and create a common arena. Over the past five years, AI Sweden has successfully established a national AI center, and now we look forward to developing a center at the Nordic level through this preliminary project,” says Svein Berg, Managing Director, Nordic Innovation.
The center aims to drive co-investment in strategic resources, increase AI usage, and create even stronger international competitiveness and attractiveness for the region. The ambition is to create real excellence and relevance for leading Nordic companies and organizations. The center will be open to partnerships with relevant stakeholders from across the Nordic and Baltic regions.
“We see an opportunity to address some of the really big challenges together in the Nordic region and are eager to contribute AI Sweden’s experience and knowledge to this end, says Martin Svensson,” Managing Director, AI Sweden.
Currently, the Nordic countries lag behind leading nations in AI, such as the USA, Canada, the UK, and Singapore, in terms of investment and adoption of AI technology. According to the Global AI Index, Finland ranks highest at 10th place, followed by Denmark at 16th, Sweden at 17th, Norway at 24th, and Iceland at 40th. This indicates significant room for improvement and increased collaboration within the region to strengthen its position on the global AI stage.
“Enhanced cooperation on AI benefits the competitiveness of the entire Nordic region while contributing to the responsible and sustainable development of the technology. To avoid falling behind, we need to prioritize the use of AI, both nationally and jointly,” says Erik Slottner, Swedish Minister for Civil Administration.
The preparatory work for the center will include identifying partnership models and partners, funding, and activities.
With a combined population of 27 million people and an economy that ranks as the 10th largest in the world, the Nordic region is also a significant player, making it relevant for collaboration with other leading AI countries and organizations.
“Responsible use and development of AI is crucial if we are to maintain trust in our societies and become the world's most green, competitive, and integrated region by 2030. At the Nordic Council of Ministers, we are proud to serve as a platform for this important collaboration,” says Karen Ellemann, Secretary General of the Nordic Council of Ministers.
