The Finnish national AI ecosystem for social and health services (SOTE) is an informal network of stakeholders in the social and healthcare sector, including authorities, businesses and researchers.
The SOTE AI ecosystem network is led by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health. The coordinating group also includes the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), the Hospital District of Helsinki and Uusimaa (HUS), Una Oy, and DigiFinland Oy. DigiFinland acts as the practical operations coordinator for the ecosystem. The innovation network was established by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health in the summer of 2024. We have more than 200 member organizations.
The AI ecosystem facilitates, enables and funds the utilisation of AI in the social and health sector:
- Brings together stakeholders to implement development projects and grants subsidies
- Collects and shares AI use cases and the experiences of pioneers
- Conducts and facilitates national surveys and studies, and promotes international cooperation
- Identifies legislative needs and makes proposals for enabling legislation.
The utilisation of AI has vast potential in the social and health sector. The ecosystem aims to ensure that the effective use of AI:
- Secures high-quality services for clients and assists professionals in their work, freeing up time for the most important tasks, such as personal interaction with clients
- Improves the productivity of the service system
- Creates business opportunities and exports, thereby generating new jobs
We aim for the rapid and impactful adoption of AI technologies while ensuring the safety and privacy of services.
Contact Information
Jukka Lähesmaa
Chairman of the SOTE AI Ecosystem
Ministry of Social Affairs and Health
jukka.lahesmaa@gov.fi
Laura Välkkilä
Coordinator of the SOTE AI Ecosystem
DigiFinland Oy
sotetekoaly@digifinland.fi