Tech Industry Expert Seppo Kuula to become the Chairman of the Board at Cloud1

Seppo Kuula has been appointed as the chairman of the board at Cloud1.

Seppo Kuula brings his insight  into expanding service business, internationalization, and the potential of artificial intelligence in data services into Cloud1.

"Cloud1 is already Finland's leading company with its expertise in processing business-critical data. One of our first tasks is to shape this expertise into even more understandable services, which artificial intelligence supports in new ways," says Seppo Kuula, Chairman of the Board of Cloud1.

Kuula currently serves as an advisor to the AI company SiloAI and brings his expertise to the development of Cloud1's business.

According to Kuula, the adoption of AI solutions is now progressing rapidly.

"For example, PwC estimates that the gross domestic product generated by AI applications will be equivalent to the combined GDP of China and India by 2030. With its data platform expertise, Cloud1 enables advanced AI solutions in this technological transformation," says Kuula.

Cloud1 aims to become a publicly listed company within the next five years.

"Seppo's visionary perspective and proven ability to leverage major technological shifts bring us new growth opportunities as we harness responsible data and AI for the development of our customers' businesses,"   says Harri Puupponen, co-founder and commercial director of Cloud1.

Overexpansion Threatens Growth

Cloud1 was founded in 2012 and has grown profitably into a company generating about 10 million euros in revenue.

The company has reached a size where domestic companies in the field are often sold to larger corporations or come under foreign ownership.

Cloud1's next leap in growth is based on precisely defining its core expertise and deepening it.

"Finland is full of examples of IT companies that have lost their grip on the market when they expanded their business beyond their core expertise and forgot what they were originally best at," says Kuula.

In Finland, companies in the field often make decisions that stifle promising growth.

"Cloud1 has found its niche in Microsoft Azure cloud platforms and does it better than anyone else in Finland. Alongside this, we are now introducing the new possibilities of artificial intelligence," outlines Kuula."

Familiar Team Reunited Again

Supporting Cloud1's next growth phase is the private equity firm Voland Partners, which made a minority investment in Cloud1 at the end of last year.

"Cloud1 is an excellently managed consultancy with the best data expertise in Finland and a winning culture. Building data platforms in the cloud and utilizing data in business are strong megatrends regardless of the industry. Cloud1 knows how to do this intelligently, cost-effectively, and responsibly," says Veera Sylvius, CEO of Voland Partners.

"Seppo Kuula is the best possible person to lead the discussions in a board that works together with the operational management to develop a new growth strategy and to help in implementing this strategy at a practical level," Sylvius continues.

Three of the four founders of Voland Partners were in Kuula's team at Siili Solutions when the company was developed into a publicly listed company to the Helsinki Stock Exchange.

Among the founders of Voland Partners, Erkka Niemi served as the CTO of Siili Solutions, Samuli Siljamäki as the CFO, and Jyrki Laune as an advisor for M&A arrangements at Siili Solutions.

"The involvement of Voland Partners in Cloud1 was a successful and crucially important decision made by the founders of the company. We have a familiar team assembled, thus creating an excellent opportunity to make Cloud1 the best company in its field not only in Finland but also internationally," says Kuula.

For more information:

Harri Puupponen, co-founder, Commerical Director, Cloud1 Oy
Phone: + 358 40 550 1175
Email: harri.puupponen@cloud1.fi

Seppo Kuula

• Education: Doctor of Technology, has also completed three university degrees
• Career: Over 20 years of experience in the transformation and development of international business for high-tech companies.
• Recent CEO experiences:
  Unikie Oy: (550+ employees)
  Enfo Oyj: (1000+ employees)
  Siili Solutions Oyj: (750+ employees)
• Has executed two public listings and nearly ten corporate mergers in the last ten years
• Kuula currently serves as an advisor to Silo AI and is a board member of Finlabs Oy. He is also the founder and chairman of the board of the communications agency Bravura Oy
  

Cloud1 Oy is a Finnish expert company specializing in data-driven cloud service solutions. Cloud1's services consist of Azure expertise, architectural design, agile development of analytics, data, and integration solutions, as well as Microsoft's advanced analytics and low code solutions. Cloud1's revenue was approximately 8 million euros in 2022.

Voland Partners Oy is a minority investor specializing in the development of technology companies. The Voland Technology Growth Fund I adheres to the principles of responsible investing as outlined in SFDR Article 8+. The fund's target size is 80 million euros. Cloud1 is Voland Partners' first investment