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Abstract: 

Geopolitics and the competition for technology and raw materials have changed the conditions under which small, open economies operate. This lecture distinguishes two responses — technological sovereignty, the ability to keep functioning when supply chains are disrupted, and technological leadership, the ability to hold capabilities that others need — and argues that for small states the second is the more reliable route to the first. Drawing on Finland’s experience in critical minerals refining, clean energy, quantum technology, Earth observation and Arctic shipping, and on Finland’s and Singapore’s shared membership of the Pax Silica partnership, the lecture examines how a small country chooses where to compete, how it manages dependence on larger partners, and what the arrival of frontier artificial intelligence changes about both.

Short Description:

Finland’s Minister of Economic Affairs examines how small states build technological leadership and manage dependence in a period of geopolitical competition, with comparisons to Singapore.