President Alexander Stubb got information about 6G research – Flagship Director Matti Latva-aho: “Very significant”

President Alexander Stubb visited Oulu on Wednesday, October 23. As part of the his visit, discussions were also held with the University of Oulu. Among other things, the President got information about 6G research and related business cooperation. According to the President, who spoke at the opening ceremony of Oulu University Hospital, investments in technology and research and the University of Oulu are Oulu’s strengths.

Matti Latva-aho, Director of the 6G Flagship Research Programme at the University of Oulu, considers the President’s visit a great demonstration of the importance of groundbreaking research.

“We consider it very important that the President is also interested in what is being studied in the 6G area in Finland and what kind of impact we have achieved. This is a great tribute to the mobile research conducted in Oulu for a long time,” says Latva-aho.

Arto Maaninen, Vice Rector for Cooperation and Rector of the University of Oulu from the beginning of 2025, also emphasises the importance of the visit.

“The visit of the President shows that both Oulu and the University of Oulu are nationally and internationally significant. The joint performance with leading high-tech companies in Oulu highlighted the societal impact of our research and education. At the inauguration of the new Oulu University Hospital, it was also a pleasure to hear how important the university is seen as a partner.”

International significance

Through its work, the 6G Flagship has strongly supported the actions of various ministries in international cooperation and topical export promotion. Latva-aho sees 6G as part of people’s everyday lives in many crucial ways in the future.

“New opportunities are opening up, for example, in improving traffic safety and robotics. Artificial intelligence is also making its way into wireless networks, and applications and the networks themselves will become intelligent and learning. In addition, the aim is to guarantee the availability of digital services regardless of time and place, also in remote areas.”

The University of Oulu has invested in mobile telecommunications research since the early 1990s. Established in 1995, the Centre for Wireless Communications aimed to become one of the world’s leaders from the outset.

“Now, less than thirty years later, we are pleased to say that the goal has been achieved. The trip has included numerous successful international research projects, more than 160 PhD theses and the growth of CWC into an entity of more than 200 researchers. We are the largest in our field globally and number one in Finland in field-specific rankings,” Latva-aho lists.

Read more about 6G Flagship at 6gflagship.com

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