Rails Ahead- Meta­verse, Oulu

Join us for Rails Ahead Spring 2025, an exclu­sive event designed to fos­ter col­lab­o­ra­tion between lead­ing cor­po­ra­tions and SMEs, accel­er­at­ing dig­i­tal trans­for­ma­tion through AI, Meta­verse, and emerg­ing tech­nolo­gies. This event offers a unique oppor­tu­ni­ty to access new deal flow, explore fund­ing oppor­tu­ni­ties, and engage in high-impact net­work­ing.

Why Attend?

Gain invalu­able insights into the lat­est trends in Dig­i­tal­iza­tion, Meta­verse, and AI, dis­cov­er­ing real-world indus­tri­al use cas­es and ground­break­ing busi­ness oppor­tu­ni­ties. Engage with star­tups, cor­po­ra­tions, and investors to expand your net­work and explore poten­tial col­lab­o­ra­tions. Learn about avail­able fund­ing options from Vin­no­va, Busi­ness Fin­land, and FOV Ven­tures, while immers­ing your­self in inter­ac­tive work­shops and cut­ting-edge tech demos designed to bring inno­va­tion to life.

What to Expect?

✔ Keynotes from indus­try lead­ers

✔ Cor­po­rate chal­lenges and col­lab­o­ra­tion oppor­tu­ni­ties

✔ Start­up pitch­es & fund­ing dis­cus­sions 

✔ Hands-on work­shops and idea sprints 

✔ Net­work­ing ses­sions with top deci­sion-mak­ers

Time: 3.4.2025, 8:30–17:00

Place: Saalastin­sali, Uni­ver­si­ty of Oulu 

Reg­is­tra­tion

This is a must-attend event for those look­ing to lever­age the full poten­tial of AI and the Meta­verse to dri­ve eco­nom­ic growth and indus­try trans­for­ma­tion.

Orga­niz­ers: Oulu­ver­su­mi, Dimecc/MEFI and SW4E ecosys­tems, Busi­ness Oulu, Busi­ness Fin­land, Uni­ver­si­ty of Oulu, Oulu Uni­ver­si­ty of Applied Sci­ences Pro­duc­er & Host: Jani Val­lirinne (Dimecc — Ecosys­tems MEFI and SW4E)

Pro­gram

Morn­ing 8:30–12:00

08:30 Reg­is­tra­tion & Cof­fee

09:00 Open­ing Remarks, Jus­si Leponiemi/Business Oulu

09:10 Meta­verse and AI: Jani Vallirinne/Metaverse Ecosys­tem Fin­land

09:30 Chris Ebel­ing, Epic Games

09:50 Vetu­rit Intro­duc­tion: Key Indus­try Play­ers

   Vetu­rit chal­lenges intro­duced: Nokia, Bit­tium

   cof­fee break

11:00 Financ­ing oppor­tu­ni­ties

   Pri­vate fund­ing: Petri Raja­halme, FOV Ven­tures

   Hori­zon fund­ing: New calls/Metaverse, Jean­nette Spüh­ler, Vin­no­va Swe­den

   Fund­ing & Inter­na­tion­al­iza­tion, San­ni Sil­ta­nen, Busi­ness Fin­land

11:30 Startup/small com­pa­nies Pitch­es — Rajee­ka Hannes

   Demo­la pitch

   Cine­share new Avatar

12:00 Lunch Break

After­noon 13:00–17:00

13:00 Intro­duc­tion to ELLIS Insti­tute Fin­land / Prof. Guoy­ing Zhao

13:30 – 16:00 Con­cur­rent Ses­sions — cof­fee served

   Tech Demos, Stands, Projects, OAMK/Demola inno­va­tion teams

13.45–14.45 Work­shop 1: Pre-gath­ered chal­lenges from Veturi pro­grams 

14.50–16.00 Work­shop 2: Dri­ving forces (dig­i­tal­iza­tion, XR and AI) 

14.50–16.00 Work­shop 3: Meta­verse Health (dig­i­tal­iza­tion, XR and AI)

14.50–16.00 Work­shop 4: Meta­verse Oulu 2026 (dig­i­tal­iza­tion, XR and AI

16:00 Wrap-Up & Evening Program/Networking

Con­tact per­son

Jani Val­lirinne

jani.vallirinne@dimecc.com