Helsinki’s startup ambitions grow with campus

The site in central Helsinki has housed a startup cluster since 2016, which will now be expanded with significant new office and non-residential space, making it one of the biggest growth company campuses in Europe.

Detailed plans are currently being drawn up by the City of Helsinki together with a consortium led by YIT and Keva to turn the southern section into a dense office block comprising 50 000 square metres of floor area for more than 4 000 workers, complemented by space for services such as, cafés, restaurants and showrooms.

“We are doing everything to ensure that Helsinki is among the world’s best places for startup and growth company activities and, at the same time, an attractive competence cluster for companies and experts alike,” Mayor of Helsinki Jan Vapaavuori said when the plans were first made public. “The expanding and strengthening Maria Growth Company Campus is an essential improvement in this work.”

Helsinki’s thriving startup ecosystem was recognised in the global startup ecosystem report last year, and, every winter, the Finnish capital plays host to the global startup community during the world-renowned Slush startup event.