Our spring season has come to a successful close, marked by exciting milestones, new collaborations, and opportunities for future innovation. 

Usha Mohanraj joining SPARK Finland management team

Earlier this spring, we were delighted to welcome Usha Mohanraj to the SPARK Finland management team. Usha is a biomedical professional who holds a PhD in Biomedicine and an MSc in Translational Medicine from the University of Helsinki. She brings a decade of academic research experience alongside over six years of business development expertise within the startup and research commercialisation landscape. Her professional background is defined by a versatile career at the intersection of science and industry, including roles in scientific business development for a CRO, co-founding a technology startup, and leading commercialisation efforts for a Business Finland-funded Research-to-Business (R2B) project.

At SPARK Finland, Usha will lead the development and expansion of the National Pre-SPARK Health Concept Discovery Program while supporting the SPARK Finland and SPARK GLOBAL communities. We are excited to have her on board as we continue to strengthen our national activities and support the next generation of health innovations. 

SPARK GLOBAL Meeting in Helsinki

Another highlight of the season was undoubtedly the SPARK GLOBAL events held in Helsinki on June 15 – 17, 2026.

The program began with the SPARK Nordic Mentoring Afternoon, bringing together around 150 participants, including project teams, mentors, and SPARK program managers from around the world. Five projects from the Nordic regions were featured (SPARK Norway, SPARK Denmark, SPARK Finland), presenting their latest technology development in different domains, ranging from microfluidic bioanalysis, pacemaker, immunocomplex antibody testing, to cancer monitoring and prediction.

The celebrations continued with the SPARK GLOBAL Evening Reception, marking the 20th anniversary of SPARK at Stanford and the upcoming 10th anniversary of SPARK Finland. It was wonderful to reconnect with long-standing partners and friends of the SPARK community. 

The 12th SPARK GLOBAL Annual Meeting followed on June 16 – 17, bringing together SPARK programs from across the globe to exchange experiences, discuss future collaborations, and welcome new programs preparing to join the network.

It was a unique opportunity to reconnect with colleagues, build new relationships, and celebrate the continued growth of the global SPARK community. The atmosphere was amazing, and new memories were made for all of us. We want to express the warmest thanks to all the participants, SPARK project teams, enablers, organizers, and supporters of our global community!

Summer Greetings from SPARK Finland team

As the spring season comes to an end, the SPARK Finland team is heading into a well-deserved summer break. We will return in early August, ready to continue supporting innovation and collaboration within our community.

We wish everyone a relaxing and enjoyable summer, and we look forward to sharing more exciting updates and news from the SPARK community in the months ahead!