VIA 2026 Collaborative Playground with Crazy Town
VIA Vantaa Industrial & Innovation Activator and Crazy Town present:
BEFORE THE PILOT
What could your company achieve with access to capabilities, technologies and knowledge beyond its own team and by leveraging on the Ecosystem?
Before the Pilot
Collaborative Playground · Vantaa Industry Activator × Crazy Town · Business Vantaa Week
26 October 2026
What makes collaboration between established companies, young B2B solution providers and research worth the time?
Finnish companies have strong capabilities. Collaboration can help turn them into growth. Yet only one in four SMEs undertakes R&D, just 3% of the others plan to start, and 13% collaborate with research institutions (Finnish SME Barometer, autumn 2026).
Before the Pilot explores what makes a first collaboration worth testing, for established companies seeking solutions, young B2B providers seeking customers, and researchers seeking business partners.
Through concrete cases and open discussion, participants share how collaborations began, what helped them progress and what they learned. Together, we explore when R&D pays back and what makes a pilot succeed.
Who should join: Leaders of SMEs and mid-size Companies, early-stage B2B Founders, and Academic and Research teams working with industry.
What you take home:
Insight: a short paper on the conditions for successful collaboration, built from the room's insights and VIA + Crazy Town experience.
Adoption Readiness Canvas: a first version of a practical tool to prepare your next pilot.
Community access: a place in the Vantaa Industry Activator community, with follow-up conversations across clusters. All invited!
08:30–09:00 | Welcome Coffee
Meet fellow participants over coffee.
09:00–11:00 | Before the Pilot
Opening · Innovation and Growth through Collaboration
Olli-Pekka Mäkirintala, Director of International Business Services, City of Vantaa
Vantaa as a city of the future and a place for business.Sagar Tandon, Board Member, G-Gravity, and Jussi Oivukkamaki, VIA Ecosystem Director
Ecosystem open innovation and the VIA approach to innovation and economic growth through collaboration.
Session 1 · From Research to Business
How can science connect more effectively with the market and help companies innovate? Explore the Research-to-Business journey through the experience of Veripalvelu, a VIA Ecosystem Partner.
🎤 Guest: Anu Meerwaldt, Business Developer, Veripalvelu, Finnish Red Cross Blood Service
💬 Moderators: Jussi Oivukkamaki, VIA Ecosystem Director, and Laura Gatti, Partner, G-Gravity
Interview and interactive Q&A.
Session 2 · Venture Clienting and Open Innovation through Ecosystems
How can companies work with startups to advance innovation and growth? Practical perspectives on venture clienting and ecosystem collaboration, drawing on Kemira’s EriCa initiative and the experience of Wellmatix.
🎤 Guests: Oona Sulkunen, EriCa Ecosystem Lead, and Sunil Singh, Wellmatix
💬 Moderator: Toni Pienonen, Founder, Crazy Town
Interview and interactive Q&A.
Closing · Key Takeaways and Networking
Reflect on the discussion, connect with participants and explore opportunities for further conversations.