Finnish deep tech company Canatu is developing solutions for critical technology sectors based on carbon nanotubes. The company heads Carbon Age, a leading company programme funded by Business Finland. Carbon Age aims to create an entirely new ecosystem in Finland.
“We are making it possible for Europe to keep pace with developments in the semiconductor industry,” says Juha Kokkonen, CEO of Canatu.
Critical technologies in a geopolitically sensitive context
Canatu’s solutions are directly related to the development and management of critical technologies in a geopolitically sensitive global context.“We make the most advanced carbon nanotubes. They go to the places where the greatest technological breakthroughs are occurring: manufacturing state-of-the-art chips, artificial intelligence, self-driving cars, the defence industry and medical diagnostics,” says Juha Kokkonen, CEO of Canatu.
Canatu’s products can be used, for example, by the Dutch company ASML in EUV lithograph devices that manufacture chips on a scale as small as two nanometres for artificial intelligence and cloud services. This makes Canatu a critical player in a technological entity that the United States is seeking to control through measures such as restricting exports of the most advanced chip technology to China.
“We are at the heart of this global technological and political battle. Our products cannot be exported to China because they are related to the manufacture of the most advanced AI chips,” Kokkonen says.
Europe has lagged behind the US and Asia in the semiconductor industry. The biggest manufacturers in the sector, such as TSMC, Intel and Samsung, are elsewhere. ASML is one of Europe’s few cutting-edge companies. “We are making it possible for Europe to keep pace with development. We are currently one of the few Nordic companies in this contest.”
A recent publication by Sitra, Technology Industries of Finland and VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland calls for stronger innovation activities throughout Europe and highlights Finland’s strengths in critical technologies.
Carbon Age builds an entirely new knowledge network in Finland
Carbon Age, a five-year leading company project, is Canatu’s response to the question of how to expand Finnish deep tech expertise. This spring, Canatu received EUR 10 million in funding from Business Finland for its programme, and EUR 20 million has been reserved for co-development projects by Carbon Age partners.
CTO Ilkka Varjos says that Canatu is opening up its carbon nanotube technology to ecosystem partners, allowing other companies to develop products based on it. “At the same time, we are building design and manufacturing rules that allow the technology to be used effectively in new industries. The world largely rests on standards. When you build a house, for example, you need two-by-four and standard screws. The same applies to the semiconductor industry: when manufacturing is standardised, innovation becomes easier. If we have these components in Finland, they can be managed and commercialised,” Varjos says.
The Carbon Age ecosystem aims to attract around 40 actors, including end-users, research institutes, and industrial enterprises. VTT and Aalto University jointly own the Micronova pilot plant and the forthcoming Kvanttinova, where carbon nanotubes will be refined to create semiconductor components.
“Projects like the Carbon Age programme combine strategic research, business-driven development, and extensive collaboration. They facilitate risk-sharing, accelerate commercialisation and can generate internationally competitive hubs of expertise,” adds Varjos. “The semiconductor industry is facing challenges. The properties of silicon are no longer sufficient. For example, halving the size of circuits in line with Moore’s law is no longer possible. Carbon nanotubes can be a key general technology that enables the continuation of long-established roadmaps and opens up entirely new directions for the industry. I believe that carbon nanotubes are a super material, and we have barely scratched the surface of their possibilities.”
Canatu’s process produces carbon nanotubes without rare earth metals
Carbon nanotubes are lightweight, durable and highly conductive structures. Canatu has developed its own method for manufacturing them.
“Our raw materials are carbon gases, which are abundant everywhere. Unlike our competitors, our manufacturing method is not based on rare earth metals such as indium or gold. Moreover, our process is more environmentally friendly than traditional manufacturing methods,” says CEO Juha Kokkonen.
Rare earth metals carry environmental problems and geopolitical risks, as their production is concentrated in a few countries, especially China.
Strong growth, internationalism and doctoral expertise
Canatu has expanded rapidly. In 2020, its turnover was EUR 1.5 million; last year, it was already EUR 22 million. “Business Finland has been an important and long-standing supporter for us. Public investment enables us to attract several multiples of the amount in private capital. This has been crucial for Canatu’s development. Research and development projects in the semiconductor industry are very long-term, sometimes taking up to seven years. Therefore, we need more than market-based financing,” Kokkonen says.
Currently, Canatu employs approximately 140 people, with more than half of them working in research and development. “About one-fifth of our personnel hold a doctoral degree or are working towards one. This indicates how deeply we need to dive into understanding the technology,” Kokkonen says.
Canatu is also an international operation, with 35 nationalities represented. According to Kokkonen, the company has been quite successful in its recruitment. However, it can be challenging to attract specialists with families to Finland. “Our people have come from places like Cambridge and the United States. We have a good reputation, and top experts attract other top experts to the same place.”
Projects like the Carbon Age programme combine strategic research, business-driven development, and extensive collaboration. They facilitate risk-sharing, accelerate commercialisation and can generate internationally competitive hubs of expertise.
Canatu’s Juha Kokkonen has 3 wishes for decision-makers
- We need to understand the importance and strategic significance of the semiconductor industry to the European economy. It is directly related to competitiveness. We must ensure that European companies can succeed, grow and remain competitive. Some manufacturing should be brought back to Europe.
- Finland should be an attractive country for top experts. We need an attractive taxation regime, international schools, kindergartens and as little bureaucracy as possible. The most important thing is that skilled people find Finland a good place to work and live.
- We must also safeguard funding when large investments are made. Finnish companies possess expertise and innovation, but they must compete against multi-billion-dollar international companies. We need to have financing opportunities here. This is the only way to create Finnish success stories.