Rising international competition is today making growing demands on the innovative ability of many companies. This is why it is also increasingly important for companies to set up business in the right context – in strong developing regions close to relevant skills, active access to venture capital, where there are networks and where investments are being made.
Innovation, research and an open cooperation between business, academia, and municipalities is also of vital importance for a company’s expansion opportunities. This collaboration generates an ecosystem that promotes growth and creates fertile soil for improved business opportunities and competitiveness. Kista Science City possesses exactly this type of ecosystem for growth. Some of the world’s foremost brands are present here, such as Ericsson, IBM, Microsoft, Nokia, companies that have made an active choice to set up business in Kista. World-leading research and innovation is also present in the area, as well as entrepreneurial programmes and incubation of new technology-intensive growth companies that benefit from the proximity to other players.
The region also home to two universities of international quality, KTH ICT and the University of Stockholm/DSV, which collaborate with each other and with research and business in Kista Science City and guarantee quality in future skills provision within ICT.
Kista Science City extends over four municipalities around Järvafältet, all of which have agreed on a common vision for the future. This means not only common investments in growth in business and higher education, but also housing, the road network, public transport and other infrastructure. Together we are building a science city – a place where academia, housing, culture, nature, recreation, service and world-leading businesses collaborate and attract new growth companies in a sector of the future.
Stakeholders participating in work to achieve this vision are:
- The City of Stockholm
- Kista District Committee
- Järfälla Municipality
- Sollentuna Municipality
- Sundbyberg Municipality
The sectoral focus for Kista Science City is in the field of Information and Communication Technology (ICT). Kista Science City is particularly prominent in mobile and wireless communication, multimedia and broadband systems. Today this is complemented by strong growth in several IT-intensive business and technology fields, in biomedical engineering (medtech) and environmental engineering (cleantech), as well as nanotechnology.
More companies, researchers and employees are located in this limited geographical area than any other place in Sweden. Developments at Kista Science City have since it was established defied both the economic climate and traditional boundaries between municipalities and political orientation. The result is the international ICT cluster that today is a natural meeting place for everyone that works, studies and researches in the ICT sector.
Internationally, Kista Science City is compared with Silicon Valley, Bangalore, Sophia Antipolis and Multimedia Supercorridor in Malaysia.
Currently there are about 8,800 businesses and over 66,500 people employed in Kista Science City. 23,000 of these work at the cluster’s 1082 ICT companies. There are also 1,100 researchers and 5,000 students with ICT in common. This strong concentration of ICT participants creates a unique environment with enormous potential – a living science city. But Kista Science City is not only about technology – some 120,000 people live in the Kista Science City area, 65,000 work here and 5,000 study at university level. Over the next 10 to 15 years there is the potential to double the number of workplaces, to increase the number of residents by 20,000-40,000 people and to increase the number of university students threefold. Kista Science City would then comprise about 150,000 residents, 120,000 employees and 15,000 university students.
