From oil to AI

Earlier this week, I attended the annual conference of our Norwegian sister organization, ICT Norway. The theme was transition, growth and the future of work. The industry believes that Norway as a nation must move from a resource economy to a knowledge economy. Oil will remain an important part of the Norwegian economy - at least for the foreseeable future - but the productivity growth of the future will come from the transformation of industry, business and the public sector. And that transformation is digitalization, and here, of course, the Norwegian IT industry plays a central role.

This was something that everyone in the assembly seemed to agree on. Not least the Norwegian Minister of Finance, Siv Jensen, who began the day by talking about how crucial it is for the Norwegian economy and Norwegian competitiveness that we dare to be sufficiently aggressive in the transition initiatives required to exploit the potential of digitization. She said that Norway can no longer rely on oil. To ensure strong productivity growth that will generate new jobs, create economic growth and finance welfare, Norway must dare to accelerate the changes brought about by digitalization. There is no alternative, Jensen said.

As a Swede, it was not difficult to feel a little jealous of my Norwegian colleagues when I listened to the Finance Minister's message. I would very much have liked to see our own finance minister also talk about these issues with the same conviction and drive. Or that one of the Swedish ministers (the IT minister possibly excepted) put digitalization at the top of their political agenda.

The Finance Minister's message was then reinforced during the day by a number of inspiring speakers, not least representatives from other industries who testified to how they have consciously decided on digital transformation, or as Anette Mellbye, CEO of Aftenposten mobile, put it: "We are not just talking about the mobile industry. Dir for Aftenposten mobil put it:

"digitize or die"

While we wait for Magdalena Andersson to take the same prominent role in the digitization development as her Norwegian colleague, we can be pleased that from 1 August we will be able to make tax deductions for help with IT services in the home. You can't really call it acceleration, but it's a small, small step in the right direction. And a good one.