Open calls for innovation

In Open Calls we seek solutions from companies, universities or research institutes that want to develop their innovation with co-creation. The open calls are usually connected to digitalisation or carbon-neutral solutions.

We’ll offer your company all the support and help needed while piloting new services in Helsinki – for free. In many of our projects, the whole city of Helsinki is available as a testbed for your innovation. Through piloting, you’ll achieve a proof of concept and valuable feedback from the end-users.

Propose a solution

SPACE4Cities Call for Tenders
SPACE4Cities Call for Tenders

Call for Tenders: Satellite data solutions for more resilient cities

The SPACE4Cities projects is looking for highly innovative solutions, utilising European satellite data, for more dynamic urban planning and more climate resilient cities. Apply by 9 April 2025 at 17:00 CET.
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SPACE4Cities Call for Tenders

Call Open for Pilots Supporting Urban Greening

The pilots chosen for the “Growth for Urban Nature” pilot programme will be implemented in Helsinki during the 2025 growing season. The application period is open until February 14, 2025, at 4:00 PM.
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Open calls in nutshell

Hundreds of companies have already participated in our open calls for innovation. Through us, companies receive support and assistance in piloting in real-life city environment in Helsinki. We at Forum Virium Helsinki help our project partners and winners of our open calls to pilot their services or products, assists with permits and, usually, provide them an important media visibility.

We also organize several hackathons every year. In them, programmers or companies are given a challenge that they try to solve during a short and intensive work period in the hackathon. In hackathons, we have developed solutions for, among other things, the city’s winter maintenance. Hackathon winners usually get a prize.

Innovation process

With innovations, we aim for low-carbon urban solutions for Helsinki and the entire European Union. In our innovation process, Forum Virium’s is constantly looking for new innovation partners and projects. When the partners are together, the implementation of the project begins.

The typical project duration is from one to three years. The most visible phase is when companies test new solutions in real life settings across Helsinki. Pilots are often carried out at the same time in other European countries, depending on who is involved in the project.

If a new smart city solution works and finds its customers, companies often continue to commercialise it until it gets established as a new urban service. The learnings of the project are mostly open information that the entire urban ecosystem can utilise.