Live from Science Week x Sveriges Innovationsriksdag
Join the conversations live, straight to your screen.
For two days, Science Week and Sveriges innovationsriksdag gather the brightest minds in tech, policy, business, and academia to explore how innovation can drive sustainable growth and global competitiveness. It’s where new ideas meet decision-makers, where collaboration sparks action, and where the future takes shape.
This year, Tech Forward will be on site to share selected moments live – bringing you into the room wherever you are. Expect inspiring discussions, bold perspectives, and fresh insights from leaders and innovators shaping Sweden’s tech and innovation landscape.
This event will be in Swedish, and you can follow both days via the same stream above.
Agenda - Wednesday 8 oktober
08:30–09:30 Grand Opening
Grand Opening 2025 brings together leaders from politics, academia and industry to take a collective look at Sweden’s role in a new global reality. How can we strengthen Sweden’s position in Europe and globally through innovation, collaboration and strategic decision-making? What does industry expect from policymakers – and vice versa – and what should the path forward look like?
This opening session will explore questions of responsibility, expectations and opportunities. Is it up to businesses and the private sector to drive the transition – and if so, what do they need to succeed? Or do we need new forms of collaboration to strengthen Sweden’s competitiveness at a time of climate challenges, rapid technological development and geopolitical shifts?
Looking ahead, Science Week and Sweden’s Innovation Parliament kick off with insights from leading voices, perspectives on today’s most pressing issues and a clear focus on what comes next.
Speakers:
Lotta Edholm – Minister for Upper Secondary School, Higher Education and Research
Märta Martin-Granlund – Regional Commissioner for Climate, Infrastructure and the Archipelago
Boel Godner – Chair of the Municipal Executive Board, Södertälje Municipality
Christian Levin – CEO, Scania CV AB
Lars Henrik Jörnving – Chair, Södertälje Science Park & VP, Scania CV AB
Fredrik Åsell – VP Sweden Operations, AstraZeneca
Marie Sandin – Managing Director, Tetra Pak Sweden & Chair, Faculty of Engineering at Lund University
Benjamin Dousa – Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade
Pia Sandvik – CEO, Teknikföretagen
Edward Murray – CEO, Co-founder & Board Member, GreenIron
Martin Hellström – Vice-Chancellor, Mälardalen University
Stina Lantz – CEO, SISP – Swedish Incubators & Science Parks
Thomas Frostberg – Moderator
09:30–13:00 Interview Sessions
14:00–14:45 Stockholm as a magnet for global talent – how can we make Stockholm more attractive to international talent?
How do we create the best possible conditions for companies to grow and for people to want to stay? And how can Stockholm further strengthen its competitiveness in the global race for talent?
Access to the right skills is essential to the Stockholm region’s capacity for innovation and long-term sustainable growth. Many employers today identify skills shortages as the greatest obstacle to development and expansion. At the same time, global competition for highly skilled talent is intensifying. Cities that want to stay ahead need to offer both attractive career opportunities and a compelling place to live.
This panel brings together leading representatives from industry, the public sector and academia to discuss how Stockholm can strengthen its position as an internationally attractive destination for talent.
Speakers:
Julika Lamberth Bagge – Head of Growth, Region Stockholm
Staffan Ingvarsson – CEO, Stockholm Business Region
Daniella Waldfogel – CEO, Stockholm Chamber of Commerce
Maria Fogelström Kylberg – CEO, Stockholm Academic Forum
Alicia Parvin – Moderator, Skills Strategy, Region Stockholm
15:15–16:00 The need for innovation to strengthen Sweden’s defence and preparedness capabilities
This session highlights the urgent need to strengthen Sweden’s defence capabilities through innovation and technological transformation.
In a rapidly changing security environment, Sweden needs the ability to act quickly, intelligently and in a coordinated way. It is no longer simply a matter of developing long-term strategies for stable conditions, but of being able to mobilise resources, make decisions and turn ideas into concrete action at speed.
Sweden’s defence and preparedness capabilities therefore need to be strengthened through a powerful combination of digitalisation, technological innovation and transformation. The ability to identify critical needs, develop solutions and rapidly put them into practice within a collaborative ecosystem will be crucial.
Speakers:
David Bergman – Head of Research, Swedish Armed Forces, Lieutenant Colonel
Robin Hughes – Strategic Innovation and Technology Director, Saab
Robert Limmergård – Secretary General, Swedish Security and Defence Industry Association (SOFF)
Josefin van der Meer – Programme Manager, Civil-Military Innovation, Vinnova
Olle Hultgren – Technical Director and Head of Strategic Materiel Management, FMV
Catharina Sandberg – CEO, LEAD
Pär Lager – Senior Advisor, Swedish Defence University
Thomas Frostberg – Moderator
16:15–17:00 A systemic shift towards a competitive net-zero industry
How do we turn the green transition from vision into reality – and how do we do it together?
The green transition can no longer be treated as a challenge for the future – it needs to happen here and now. Meeting climate targets while strengthening the resilience and innovative capacity of Swedish industry requires a systemic shift. We need to think differently, collaborate more broadly and act faster.
Sweden is also one of the world’s most trade-dependent economies, with a manufacturing industry deeply integrated into global value chains. An uncertain and rapidly changing geopolitical landscape affects us at multiple levels. So how can we prepare manufacturing to become more adaptive, resilient and better equipped for the future?
This fast-paced Net Zero Industry session begins by setting the scene: what does a systemic industrial shift actually mean, and how can we build it together?
A panel discussion with representatives from industry, government and academia will then explore the concrete and ambitious steps that need to be taken – in parallel and together – to create a resilient and globally competitive industry.
Speakers:
Monica Bellgran – Professor of Production Development, Mälardalen University
David Mjureke – Environmental Sustainability Strategist, Scania
Klara Helstad – Deputy Head of Department for Research, Innovation and Business Development, Swedish Energy Agency
Klas Cullbrand – Analysis and Innovation Strategist, Net Zero Industry
Sofia Wieselfors – Moderator, Programme Director, Net Zero Industry
Agenda – Thursday, 9 October
08:00–08:45 Joining forces for a sustainable Swedish industry – skills, competitiveness and collaboration
The future of Swedish industry is critical to both Sweden’s sustainability transition and its global competitiveness. Success will require a collective effort to address skills supply and strengthen collaboration between companies, academia, society and individuals.
This session approaches the challenge from three perspectives: systems, responsibility and action. It explores skills as a shared societal challenge while also looking at practical ways to bridge the gaps between large and small companies, strategic ambitions and individual realities, and the education system and the actual needs of industry.
How can we build models for lifelong learning, shared responsibility and risk-sharing? And what can we learn from successful initiatives such as Teknikcollege, regional programmes and partnerships between industry and academia?
Skills need to be viewed as a strategic investment – just as important as machinery or a production line. Through collaboration and shared risk, successful initiatives can be scaled, spread nationally and developed into sustainable models for the future of Swedish industry.
What steps can we take together – and what responsibility does each stakeholder have?
Speakers:
Camilla Georgsson – Head of Talent, Teknikföretagen
Lars-Henrik Jörnving – Vice President, Head of Global Industrial Development, Scania CV AB
Monica Bellgran – Professor of Production Development, Mälardalen University
Thomas Nilsson – CEO, IUC Sverige
Ola Asplund – Senior Advisor, IF Metall
09:00–09:45 AI & Talent Intelligence – the future of recruitment and internal talent mobility
In this panel discussion, AstraZeneca shares how it is exploring and using Talent Intelligence to future-proof recruitment and strengthen its internal talent and skills strategy.
By shifting the focus towards skills, AstraZeneca aims to identify and develop adaptable employees who can meet the demands of an increasingly fast-changing world. The panel will discuss the benefits of Talent Intelligence, potential pitfalls and how organisations can use data and AI to better identify, develop and retain top talent.
Talent Intelligence is an organisational strategy that uses data and AI to enable smarter, more informed decisions about employees and candidates. By collecting and analysing information about skills and capabilities, organisations can improve recruitment, professional development and strategic workforce planning.
It can help identify skills gaps, anticipate future recruitment needs and create better opportunities for employees to develop and thrive. In short, Talent Intelligence can help organisations match the right person with the right role and make better-informed decisions about their workforce.
Speakers:
Pär Linderum – Talent Acquisition Lead Sweden, AstraZeneca
Linda Andersson – Moderator, Talent Acquisition Partner, AstraZeneca
Anki Ljung – Head of Emerging Talents, Ericsson
Karin Serdén – Senior Recruitment Consultant, Life Science, Hays
10:15–11:00 What should we do with all our textiles?
Telge Återvinning invites you to a conversation about building a sustainable textile system for the future. This session focuses on textile recycling: how can textiles currently destined for energy recovery instead be brought into circular material flows?
Since the new EU directive came into force at the beginning of the year, giving municipalities responsibility for collecting textiles, Telge Återvinning has developed new ways of working to meet the requirements. The challenge involves both managing the large volumes of textiles being collected and finding solutions for lower-quality materials.
Together with representatives from across the textile value chain, the panel will explore practical solutions for materials that might otherwise go to waste. What solutions are available today? What is needed to scale textile recycling? And what should happen next?
Join us for a session where innovation meets real-world challenges and new possibilities for the textile flows of the future take shape.
Speakers:
Varvara Apostolopoulou-Kalkavoura – CEO/CTO, CelluCircle
Vesa Hiltula – CEO, Telge Återvinning
Viktoria Arndt – Global Sales & Business Development Manager, Kappahl
Birgitta Losman – Sustainability Strategist, Science Park Borås, University of Borås
Susanne Nejderås – Textile Strategist, Science Park Borås, University of Borås
Lydia Capollichio – Moderator
16:15–17:00 Fast-tracking Industry 5.0 – accelerate your digital transformation
Learn from the experiences and lessons of successful digital transformation at two of Sweden’s leading industrial companies: AstraZeneca in Södertälje and Sandvik Coromant in Gimo.
Both sites have been recognised as Global Lighthouses for advanced digitalisation by the World Economic Forum. In this session, these industrial pioneers share both their successes and lessons learned, demonstrating how lean practices, digital initiatives and sustainability can work together.
Explore how digital transformation can shorten lead times, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and become a driver of innovation and productivity. Discover how the journey can not only strengthen competitiveness but also make companies more attractive places to work.
The session offers practical insights, examples and inspiration for organisations looking to accelerate their own digital transformation.
Speakers:
Anders Bergman – Digital Business Transformation Lead, AstraZeneca
Lars Matiasson – Manager Global Manufacturing Equipment & Engineering, Sandvik Gimo
Linda Menrik – Moderator, COO, Södertälje Science Park & Programme Manager, SuPr