FutureTech Oulu

FutureTech Oulu 2026 – New Era of Cre­ativ­i­ty

Busi­nes­sOulu invites you to FutureTech Oulu 2026, one of the region’s lead­ing tech­nol­o­gy events, bring­ing togeth­er pro­fes­sion­als, researchers, entre­pre­neurs and inno­va­tors to explore how tech­nol­o­gy is reshap­ing the way we cre­ate, think and work.

This year’s theme, New Era of Cre­ativ­i­ty, focus­es on the grow­ing con­nec­tion between human cre­ativ­i­ty and emerg­ing tech­nolo­gies. As arti­fi­cial intel­li­gence becomes an increas­ing­ly impor­tant part of our every­day lives and pro­fes­sion­al envi­ron­ments, the event exam­ines how tech­nol­o­gy is influ­enc­ing inno­va­tion, prob­lem-solv­ing and the gen­er­a­tion of new ideas.

Join us for a morn­ing of inspir­ing keynote pre­sen­ta­tions, thought-pro­vok­ing dis­cus­sions and valu­able net­work­ing oppor­tu­ni­ties. FutureTech Oulu 2026 offers prac­ti­cal insights, fresh per­spec­tives and oppor­tu­ni­ties to con­nect with experts and peers from indus­try, research, star­tups and the pub­lic sec­tor.

Time: 8 Octo­ber 2026, 8.00 – 13.30
Place: Tullisali Event Cen­ter, Oulu
The event is free of charge and will be held in Eng­lish.

Reg­is­tra­tion.

Built on Oulu’s strong tra­di­tion of tech­nol­o­gy and inno­va­tion, the event high­lights new devel­op­ments in arti­fi­cial intel­li­gence and oth­er emerg­ing tech­nolo­gies that are trans­form­ing how we cre­ate val­ue, col­lab­o­rate and make deci­sions. By bring­ing togeth­er researchers, busi­ness­es and tech­nol­o­gy pro­fes­sion­als, FutureTech cre­ates a space for learn­ing, inspi­ra­tion and mean­ing­ful dia­logue about the future.

The pro­gram fea­tures keynote speak­ers and lead­ing experts who will share their expe­ri­ences, ideas and visions on the chang­ing role of tech­nol­o­gy in soci­ety and work­ing life.

Event theme

The theme of FutureTech Oulu 2026 explores the evolv­ing rela­tion­ship between cre­ativ­i­ty and tech­nol­o­gy in an era where machines are no longer just tools, but active par­tic­i­pants in the cre­ative process.

As arti­fi­cial intel­li­gence increas­ing­ly sup­ports and chal­lenges human imag­i­na­tion, it rais­es an impor­tant ques­tion: are we shap­ing tech­nol­o­gy, or is tech­nol­o­gy shap­ing how we cre­ate, think and decide? FutureTech Oulu 2026 invites par­tic­i­pants to reflect on how cre­ativ­i­ty is chang­ing when humans and intel­li­gent sys­tems work side by side.

Dis­cus­sions will address human-machine co-cre­ation, the role of arti­fi­cial intel­li­gence in gen­er­at­ing knowl­edge and ideas, and the eth­i­cal bound­aries of cre­ative auton­o­my. The pro­gram also high­lights dual-use tech­nolo­gies, exam­in­ing how inno­va­tion can serve both civ­il and strate­gic pur­pos­es in a rapid­ly chang­ing world.

Why attend?

FutureTech Oulu 2026 is designed for any­one who wants to under­stand how tech­nol­o­gy is trans­form­ing cre­ativ­i­ty, inno­va­tion and the way we work.

The event offers:

• Inspir­ing per­spec­tives on arti­fi­cial intel­li­gence and emerg­ing tech­nolo­gies
• Insights from lead­ing experts, researchers and inno­va­tors
• Real-world exam­ples of tech­nol­o­gy-dri­ven trans­for­ma­tion
• Oppor­tu­ni­ties to build new con­nec­tions and col­lab­o­ra­tions
• Fresh ideas for nav­i­gat­ing a rapid­ly chang­ing tech­no­log­i­cal land­scape

Whether you are devel­op­ing new solu­tions, lead­ing change in your orga­ni­za­tion, con­duct­ing research or sim­ply curi­ous about the future, FutureTech Oulu 2026 pro­vides the knowl­edge, inspi­ra­tion and net­works need­ed to thrive in the new era of cre­ativ­i­ty.

Pro­gram

08:00 Reg­is­tra­tion & Break­fast
08:45 Open­ing words, Juha Ala-Mur­su­la

Cre­aT­e­ch: Where Tech­nol­o­gy Meets Imag­i­na­tion
08:50 VISIO: Expe­ri­enc­ing the Future of Immer­sive Dis­cov­ery”, Maria Gull­sten (Oulu Muse­um and Sci­ence Cen­tre)
09:05 Cre­ative Intel­li­gence: The New Engine of Future Busi­ness, Jon­na Häkkilä(Uni­ver­si­ty of Lap­land)
09:25 From Idea to Expe­ri­ence: The Mak­ing of OP’s Future Demo, Päivi Jär­ven­pää(OP)
09:40 From Prompt to Pre­miere: Build­ing a Music Video with AI, Jani Kaipainen(VRKi­wi)

09:55 Break  

10:10 The real AI trans­for­ma­tion of knowl­edge work (it’s not automa­tion), Tar­mo Pajunen
10:40 Valve One: Com­mer­cial Clar­i­ty in the Age of AI, Hei­di Kana­nen
11:00 Pan­el: Co-cre­at­ed with Machine: Jus­si Lep­onie­mi
Pan­elists: Anna Suor­sa(Uni­ver­si­ty of Oulu, Human­i­ties), Marko Jaanu (Siili Solu­tions), Jesse Lumme(Smilee)

11:30 Lunch break (Self-paid)

12:30 AI and Cre­ativ­i­ty: What’s Real — and What Only Looks Cre­ative? Rei­dar Wase­nius
12:50 Dual-Use Inno­va­tion: Finland’s Next Growth Engine: Heik­ki Aura
13:20 Pro­bot: Day Wrap-Up, Antti Tikan­mä­ki

Read more infor­ma­tion about the event and reg­is­ter!

Join us and explore the new era of cre­ativ­i­ty.

Con­tact per­son

Sari Kaup­pi­la
Spe­cial­ist, Busi­ness Coop­er­a­tion
sari.kauppila@businessoulu.com