ELLIS Institute Finland Grand Opening Solidifies Europe’s Commitment to Global AI Leadership
TURKU, FINLAND – 17 November 2025 – The European Laboratory for Learning and Intelligent Systems (ELLIS) Society today celebrates a milestone achievement for European artificial intelligence (AI) research with the official opening of the ELLIS Institute Finland. The Institute’s launch takes place at the AI Summit in Turku, Finland, marking a significant step in ELLIS’s mission to secure lasting international leadership for AI developed in Europe.
The AI Summit is a landmark international event hosted by Finland and the City of Turku, bringing together world-class AI researchers, top business leaders, and influential decision-makers from across Europe and the globe. The Official launch of ELLIS Institute Finland is a central part of the day's programme.
The establishment of ELLIS Institute Finland, announced in 2025, marks it as the second ELLIS Institute within the pan-European network of excellence, alongside the ELLIS Institute Tübingen in Germany. The creation of such Institutes is crucial, as ELLIS advocates for these large centers to be capable of competing with leading academic and industry institutions worldwide, thereby attracting top global talent and fostering innovation. This new world-class research hub builds upon Finland's strong history of pioneering machine learning research, previously housed at the Finnish Center for Artificial Intelligence (FCAI).
The new Institute is strategically positioned to strengthen Europe’s technological resilience and advance research objectives by operating in partnership with Finnish universities, RDI organisations, and businesses. It is backed by substantial public and private funding, including annual support from Finland's Ministry of Education and Culture and private funding from sources like Foundation PS, which contributes toward ELLIS professorships. Furthermore, the Institute benefits from access to excellent computing resources, including the LUMI supercomputer and the European AI Factory.
Bernhard Schölkopf, Scientific Director of ELLIS Institute Tübingen, Co-Founder & former Board President of ELLIS, and Serge Belongie, current ELLIS Board President, will participate in the opening ceremony alongside Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo.
Reflecting on the significance of the event, Belongie stated, “the official opening of the ELLIS Institute Finland represents a pivotal moment in our strategy to build a truly multi-centric AI research laboratory across the continent. As the second ELLIS Institute, Finland’s commitment sends a clear and strong signal that Europe is serious about investing in the fundamental research needed to shape the future of human-centered, beneficial, and safe AI."
Schölkopf added, “this expansion directly strengthens the European AI landscape, bringing together top researchers and essential infrastructure, like the LUMI supercomputer, to achieve international excellence and secure global leadership for AI made in Europe.”
The ELLIS Institute Finland has ambitious scientific goals: to fundamentally reimagine AI and machine learning to transform research and development (R&D), enhance human-AI teamwork, and create exciting new science.
Samuel Kaski, Founding Director & Professor at ELLIS Institute Finland, and ELLIS Board Member, underscored the Institute's bold vision, “we are scaling up the institute very quickly, and our ambition is clear: we aim to renew the very core of R&D by making machine learning better and more widely applicable. This requires setting up 'new fundamentals' in how we work with partners, combining academic and industry expertise to solve critical problems. The ELLIS Institute Finland is dedicated to attracting global talent, fostering collaboration across domains, and establishing new fundamentals for applied AI.”
Following the main summit in Turku, the ELLIS Institute Finland will host its Scientific Seminar and Launch on November 18, 2025, in Espoo. Day 2 will feature keynotes and discussions on Europe’s agenda for AI in science, including participation from Belongie, Kaski, and other distinguished international researchers.
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About ELLIS
ELLIS (European Laboratory for Learning and Intelligent Systems) is a pan-European AI network of excellence founded in 2018. It builds upon machine learning as the driving force of modern AI and aims to secure lasting international leadership in AI developed in Europe. By fostering collaboration among top researchers and creating a multi-centric research laboratory, ELLIS ensures that Europe remains at the forefront of cutting-edge AI innovation. The network has grown to include 43 ELLIS Sites at world-class institutions across 16 countries, 16 specialised research programs, and a pan-European PhD/Postdoc program. Through these efforts, ELLIS shapes the future of artificial intelligence in alignment with Europe’s values of openness, collaboration, and societal impact.
More about ELLIS: ellis.eu
For media: ellis.eu/media
