Discovering Europe
Innovation at all costs
The Kista Science City, home to more than 4,700 businesses and including big names such as Ericsson, in itself symbolises Swedish-style inventiveness. The all-round champion when it comes to innovation – beating even Japan and the United States – Sweden owes this status to a judicious mix of pragmatism and daring.
© Marie-Martine Buckens
“Kista is a Viking name meaning coffin!” explains Mats Hedenström, head of international relations at the Kista Science City, by way of introduction. Kista’s origins date back to 1976 when SRA, Svenska Radiobolaget and Ericsson set up at the site, followed two years later by IBM. “It is true that there are some who would indeed like to see us in a coffin”, continues Mats Hedenström. “This is due to the importance Kista has assumed since 1976. With almost 64,000 employees and a total of 4,731 businesses, including 70 set up in 2008, Kista is the leading innovation centre in terms of human density. This is a major asset, enabling people to meet easily in an environment that is also very international.” After IBM, other big names followed, such as Nokia, Intel and Microsoft. This is because Kista is first and foremost a centre for ICTs (Information and Communication Technologies). “We are one of the top five ICT clusters, after Silicon Valley and Boston in the United States”, continues Mats Hedenström. “In Europe, we cooperate closely with Sophia Antipolis, in the south of France, which is home to companies of the same kind.”
Yet there are also differences. Sophia Antipolis has significantly more researchers than Kista (about 2,000), although the Swedish science city is home to Stockholm University and the Institute for Technological Research. “We operate in a different way, we are more business-oriented”, explains the head of international relations. “Kista is essentially a place where competitors can cooperate to achieve increased growth.” Better still, Kista is there to assist people who want to set up a business. With a public budget it invests in start-ups and is reimbursed if they prove successful. “About 100 new businesses set up in Kista every year, but not all survive. Last year the ‘losses’ were 30 per cent. We have a strong entrepreneurial tradition and nobody is ever condemned for going bankrupt.” A sign of the times? Many of these start-ups are specialised in environmental and multimedia technologies, fields in which Kista wants to expand.
Champion
Every year the “Innovation Scoreboards” published by the European Commission confirm the fact: Sweden is beating the records when it comes to innovation, even if in 2009 it was overtaken by Switzerland. It is followed in the ranking by Denmark, Finland, Germany and Japan. Among other things, the Swedes are champions of continuous training, with a participation rate of 35 per cent compared to a European average of 11 per cent (2007 figures). Another strong point is the priority awarded to higher education and investment in research and development. As a percentage of GDP, Sweden invests more in R&D than any of the other OECD countries.
