Aalto Startup Center (ASUC), located next to Aalto University in Espoo, Otaniemi, has been the home base for Xiphera for the past three years. This is not an everyday location, since as the name suggests, ASUC provides office space for the growth companies in the beginning of their stories that are connected to Aalto University in one way or another. Startup Center is a home for over thirty startups and part of A Grid, one of the biggest growth company centers in Northern Europe.
The entrepreneurship spirit can be seen all around the Aalto University campus and communities. Entrepreneurship clubs are part of students’ everyday life, and hugely popular events such as Slush have started from the ideas and initiatives of Aalto students. The university and its six schools (Engineering, Business, Chemical Engineering, Science, Electrical Engineering, and Arts, Design and Architecture) all encourage their students to try their wings in the entrepreneurship world.
A Grid and ASUC are then only a part of the vast entrepreneurship mindset of the whole Otaniemi campus area. As a growth company, Xiphera sees this as a benefit: “We are surrounded by dozens of innovative and inspiring young companies from numerous business fields”, says Kimmo Järvinen, CTO and Co-founder of Xiphera. “The atmosphere is motivating, and ASUC offers help for us in many situations.”
ASUC offers for example Business Advisors to provide support in e.g. sales, marketing, and finance. No company is left alone, and they are encouraged to ask for any help they need. “Startup Center almost feels like a small entrepreneurship-minded community”, Kimmo describes with a smile.
New Year, new chapter, new office
Xiphera’s current office has been ideal for what the company was sized in the beginning of 2020. However, since the staff has doubled during the past year and the rental agreement is finishing soon, the mission for the past few months has been finding a new home for the growing company. “We have enjoyed being in the immediacy of the Aalto University”, says Matti Tommiska, Xiphera’s CEO and Co-founder. “We have our own career and study history here. Additionally, we are glad to grow our company with the young talents of Aalto University; for them, a workplace located next to your school is a win-win situation.”
These reasons affected the decision, and the best option for the new office premises was decided to be also in A Grid, in the other end of the same building. This is a clear indicator for Xiphera’s comfort in the current location; not only the moving will get easier, but the immident closeness to the university as well as the good facilities of A Grid continue to be available.
Move-in day is just before the holidays. This enables a fresh start in the brand new office right in the beginning of 2021.
The bigger new space in the other end of the A Grid opens many doors for Xiphera. First, a bigger office enables the company continue its growth in the future with competitive talents. Second, leaving Aalto Startup Center symbolises the end of an era in one way; the beginning of Xiphera’s story starts to be over, and the new page is turned. Moving out from the Startup Center, a safe and helpful home for three years, is almost like stepping out from a sandpit to the global playground of the more “mature” companies.
Read our article “Aalto Startup Center posts a captivating article about Xiphera’s story” here.
