The Art of Digitalisation

• Insights for the UK’s eID debate from Estonian experience

  In this special episode, we examine what happens when a country with decades of digital-state experience meets a nation only beginning to debate digital identity. Estonia’s Chief Information Officer, Lauri Luht, and long-time e-Residency advocate Adam Rang, unpack the UK’s sudden pivot toward eID, the misconceptions shaping public fears, and the practical realities behind privacy, data protection and cyber resilience. They explain why digital identity is not a threat to civil liberties but a prerequisite for transparency, how trust is built through consent and accountability, and why culturally aligned design, not “one-size-fits-all” solutions, determines success. The conversation also explores the soft-power impact of Estonia’s digital reputation and the opportunities that a well-implemented eID unlocks for both citizens and the private sector. 

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• Cyber command: defending a digital society

  In this episode, we explore how national defence changes when society itself becomes digital. Mikk Tikk, Deputy Commander of the Estonian Defence Forces Cyber Command and lead mentor at NATO DIANA, explains why cyber security protects a way of life rather than just infrastructure. He outlines how redundancy, joint exercises, and close cooperation with the private sector shape modern defence, why Cyber Command must be ready to operate without the internet, and how innovation, from AI to drones and space-based networks, is redefining both threats and capabilities. 

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• Digitalisation, cleantech, and the green transition

  In this episode, we examine how digitalisation accelerates the green transition. Mikk Vainik from Rohetiiger outlines how secure data, interoperability, and sector roadmaps turn sustainability goals into measurable business practice. Sven Parkel from the Estonian Hydrogen Cluster explains renewable hydrogen and Hydrogen Valleys, why EU-driven collaboration matters, how research translates into real-world pilots, and where startups can create the most impact. 

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• AI and the future of e-health

  In this episode, we dive into the future of e-health and pharmaceuticals. Kertti Merimaa from Nortal shares how AI is already transforming healthcare through diagnostics, clinical decision support, and predictive tools, while also dispelling common myths about AI in medicine. Jason Grenfell-Gardner, CEO of J. Molner Company, explains how Estonia became a base for pharmaceutical innovation and why fixing fragile drug supply chains is just as critical as breakthrough therapies. 

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• Vattan PS and the future of AI sovereignty

  In this episode, visionary founder Vattan PS explains why countries cannot afford to depend solely on a handful of global AI providers. We discuss Estonia’s role as a potential prototype nation for AI governance, why AI literacy is becoming core infrastructure, and how upcoming shifts in cost, regulation, and adoption will reshape the landscape faster than any digital transformation before. Vattan PS is building the infrastructure for human potential at a planetary scale. As Founder of Founderly, the operating system for founder success, and Founding Visionary at V, he's defining systems where humans and AI multiply each other's capabilities through Agency. The pattern is clear: companies depending on OpenAI's API today look like businesses running on AOL in 1999. While others debate AI safety, Vattan is building sovereign AI infrastructure, making every human as powerful as a team, not unemployed. The Estonian AI initiatives, New Nordics AI Week, AI Forum, and EstoniAI Meetup, aren't events but infrastructure installations, creating the builder density for Estonia to prototype what every nation needs: AI sovereignty.Find out more: https://v.ee https://founderly.comhttps://newnordicsai.comhttps://aiml.eehttps://estoniai.com

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