Nearly half the people in Estonia use artificial intelligence

The latest data from Statistics Estonia’s internet use and digital skills survey reveal that there are now 564,800 households with an internet connection, accounting for 95% of all households in Estonia. Compared with 2024, the number of households with internet access has increased by 20,000.

Tiina Pärson, leading analyst at Statistics Estonia, said that internet use is a common practice among younger and middle-aged people (16–54-year-olds), with almost 100% of them using the internet.

Internet use has increased significantly among the elderly. For example, compared with last year, internet use has risen by five percentage points in the 55–64 age group and by six percentage points among 65–74-year-olds. Compared with 2020, the increase has been even greater, at 11 percentage points among people aged 55–64 and 20 percentage points among people aged 65–74. “One key factor is the natural change of age groups. People who are already accustomed to using the internet are moving into older age groups, leading to greater digital competence among the elderly,” the analyst explained.

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Originally published on 16 Sep

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Latvia accredits its first professional continuing education programme in cybersecurity

By Labs of Latvia 5 March 2025

In response to growing cybersecurity challenges, Latvia has accredited its first professional continuing education programme in cybersecurity—the Cybersecurity Technician programme, which is available at the European Distance Learning Centre. The programme seeks to train qualified cybersecurity technicians capable of ensuring the security of an organisation’s IT systems and data, identifying and responding to cybersecurity threats, and implementing preventive measures to protect IT environments.

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Originally published on 5 Mar

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Tallinn wins ITB Earth Award 2025 for zero-waste festival initiative

By City of Tallinn 5 March 2025

Tallinn’s story of a zero-waste Song and Dance Celebration has won the ITB Earth Award 2025 at the Green Destinations Top 100 Story Awards competition, one of the world’s largest tourism fairs held in Berlin. The award highlights Tallinn’s innovation and commitment to sustainability as a tourism destination.

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Originally published on 5 Mar

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Stargate Hydrogen raises 11 million euro series A for scaling up precious metal free electrolysers

By Trade with Estonia 5 March 2025

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Stargate Hydrogen, an Estonian manufacturer of innovative electrolyser stacks and systems, announces the successful completion of its series A funding round, raising 11 million euros in equity investments from strategic customers and financial investors.

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Originally published on 4 Mar

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Fourth Edition of the World´s Biggest Virtual Company Visit focuses on circular economy

By BusinessOulu 4 March 2025

For the fourth time, Työn Taitajat (Talents for the future programme in the city of Oulu) is organizing the World’s Biggest Virtual Company Visit in collaboration with companies promoting the circular economy in Oulu, along with the University of Oulu, Oulu University of Applied Sciences, and Educational consortium OSAO. The event is also supported by the Oulu Circular Economy Cluster, Oulu Innovation Alliance, International House Oulu, and Taikasatukulma.

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Originally published on 4 Mar

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Riga to invest EUR 170,000 in an accelerator and incubator support programme

By Labs of Latvia 4 March 2025

Until March 16, the Riga City Municipality is accepting applications for the Riga Startup Accelerator and Incubator Support Programme. The programme aims to foster the growth of the startup sector in Riga by providing co-financing for business incubation and acceleration programmes. The budget for this programme in 2025 is EUR 170,000, with up to EUR 40,000 in co-financing available per applicant.

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Originally published on 4 Mar

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ANDRITZ to engineer another 100 MW green hydrogen plant for Germany

By Rostock Port 4 March 2025

GRAZ, MARCH 3, 2025. International technology group ANDRITZ has received an order for the authority engineering of a 100 MW green hydrogen plant in Rostock, Germany. The order was placed by REPCO (rostock EnergyPort cooperation GmbH), a joint venture of RWE Generation SE, EnBW Neue Energien GmbH, RheinEnergie AG and Rostock Port GmbH. Subject to the investment decision planned for mid-2025, REPCO intends to give ANDRITZ the notice to proceed with the supply of the plant. It will be one of the first plants in Germany to supply the German “Hydrogen Core Network” and the future European Hydrogen Backbone infrastructure, thus representing a key step in advancing Europe’s green energy transition.

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Originally published on 4 Mar

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NATO DIANA Accelerator alumni GaltTec secures €1M to power drones and IoT devices with next-generation fuel cells

By Startup Inkubaator 3 March 2025

GaltTec, an Estonian deep-tech startup developing micro-tubular solid oxide fuel cells (mSOFCs) for portable and off-grid energy solutions, has successfully closed its pre-seed funding round, raising a total of €1 million from private investors and grants. The investment will accelerate the company’s mission to provide lightweight, long-lasting power solutions for drones and IoT devices, reducing reliance on conventional batteries. GaltTec was the only Estonian startup in the NATO DIANA Accelerator’s first batch. 

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Originally published on 3 Mar

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Is film the next big startup opportunity? Insights from the Film and Multimedia Accelerator panel at JobFair 2025

By Tehnopol 3 March 2025

Last week, kood/Jõhvi JobFair brought together over 200 participants—young software developers, startup enthusiasts, film professionals, and technology sector leaders. One of the event’s highlights was the Film and Multimedia Accelerator panel, organized by the Tehnopol Startup Incubator, where experts discussed how IDA Hub is not just a film studio but a launchpad for technological innovation and startup growth.

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Originally published on 3 Mar

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PAYSTRAX accelerates growth in Lithuania with multi-city success story

By Invest Lithuania 3 March 2025

PAYSTRAX, a payment processing solutions provider, has announced further expansion of its Lithuanian operations. The company, which has successfully grown its presence in both Vilnius and Klaipėda, plans to strengthen its team across multiple departments in 2025, including Commercial, IT, and Finance. 

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Originally published on 3 Mar

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The Estonian cyber security startup Phishbite is aiming to enter neighbouring markets

By Startup Inkubaator 1 March 2025

Tehnopol is part of the joint Northbound Scaleups (NBSCALE) project, which helps companies expand into new markets. The Estonian startup Phishbite went to visit Poland to look at possible target markets.

The goal was to meet at least five possible partners. “Making contacts was quite time-consuming and it was quite difficult to get through to the right people by telephone from here. The meetings we held went well, and we also managed to organise a couple of extra ones on the spot as well as those we had agreed in advance”, said co-founder of Phishbite Urmo Keskel.

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Originally published on 28 Feb

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