Foundation for Finnish Inventions

Present

The mission of the Foundation is to promote inventive activities and better utilisation of inventions in Finland. While the nature of inventions is in constant change with a higher share of service- and business model inventions the Foundation emphasizes the central role of any and all inventions as a core of  successful innovations and new business. The target group of the Foundation comprises private inventors, sme companies, startups, students as well as inventors in academia and corporate inventors.

Keksintösäätiön aloitteesta vuonna 2020 käynnistynyt Kaakkois-Suomen ELY-keskuksen “Ideasta innovaatioksi”-hanke loi pohjan uuden ajan innovaatiopalveluiden tuottamiselle. Ideajalostamo konseptin työstäminen on edennyt hankkeen jälkeen säätiön omin toimin, ja vuoden 2022 aikana säätiö hakee rahoitusta konseptin toteuttamiselle ja pilotoinnille. Säätiö on toteuttanut eräitä täsmähankkeita osaamisen kehittämiseksi. Keksijöiden IPR osaamista kasvattava verkkokurssi, keksijäpainotteisen tuotekehittäjän ammattitutkinnon synnyttäminen ja Keksintöjen viikon kehittäminen ovat saaneet säätiöltä rahoitusta.

In 2020 the Foundation launched an initiative for developing a new model for innovation services in Finland which lead to a project funded by the South-East Finland Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment. During the project “From Idea to Innovation” the basic concept of an Ideabrewery/Idearefinery was developed. The work has continued in the Foundation even after the end of the project and it will launched and piloted during 2022.

Additionally, funding has been allocated for creating an on-line course   for inventors on IP awareness and know-how, establishing a vocational examination for inventors and supporting the Inventor’s Week annual event.

The Foundation operates a Facebook group “KeksintöKeidas™ ” (Invention Oasis) for peer support of inventors with over  1500 members participating in discussions and networking. Communication and dissemination channles inlucde Facebook and LinkedIn pages and Twitter account with reguler content of current news and events.

Past

The Foundation for Finnish Inventions was established in 1971 to continue the work initiated in 1957 by the Invention Office of the Finnish Cultural Foundation with funds donated by Ms. Maili Aution. The Foundation for Finnish Inventions has since supported thousands of Finnish inventors and SMEs in their search to build up  their initial ideas and inventions and advance their utilisation and commercial success. The Foundation has provided evaluation and sparring, consultation and co-creation services, as well as 5 000 – 50 000 € risk funding for high potential development projects. 

Since 2014 the funding and most of the services were transferred to the government agencies (Business Finland and the Centres for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment) marking the end for the invention project funding by the Foundation and significantly reducing the support services for inventors. The Foundation’s Advisory Board was abolished and the right to nominate the members to the board was awared to four key stake holders: The Federation of Finnish Entreprenurs and SME businesses, The Finnish Inventors’ National Federation, The IPR University Center, and The Society of Patent Agents. 

The Foundation has bee following between 2014-2020 with a growing concern the state of the national innovation ecosystem. The apparent failure of the government organisations to maintain the previous high level of services for inventors, as well as lack of funding for invention projects has lead to an unsustainable situation where inventors are not receiving sufficient support for their efforts.