Seppo Kuula Appointed CEO of Cloud1

Cloud1 aims to grow into the leading company in the Nordic region by addressing a critical problem that companies often encounter on their digital development path.

Experienced technology sector growth company leader, Doctor of Science in Technology, Seppo Kuula has been appointed CEO of the IT company Cloud1. He will start in his new role in August. Kuula has previously successfully led the growth of companies such as Siili Solutions, Enfo, and Unikie. For the past 1.5 years, he has served as the Head of Service Business at the AI company Silo AI. 

”I have had the privilege of leading great companies at the forefront of digital era transformations, from the development of data transfer to digital services and new platforms. Now the AI revolution is just beginning, and I see an opportunity with Cloud1 to be a pioneer in helping companies on that journey," says Kuula. 

Leading Azure Development Partner 

Cloud1 aims to grow into the leading Nordic company in enterprise AI systems, particularly those based on Microsoft's technology data platforms and data management solutions. 

"Microsoft is the only company in the world that has the entire technology stack to embed AI into an information system. For example, in generative AI, we have only seen the introduction and prelude of the technology," Kuula evaluates. 

Cloud1's growth is fueled by acquisitions in Finland and abroad with the support of private equity investor Voland Partners. The recently announced merger of Devisioona Oy with the Cloud1 Group significantly strengthens the company's service offering in integration and user interface development as well as AI applications. 

"Cloud1 has become an end-to-end development partner for its customers' data activities. This comprehensive solution in the Azure ecosystem, from data platforms to integrations and interfaces, creates an advantageous position for us. Corporate acquisitions accelerate our growth as we expand into the Nordic markets," says Kuula. 

Cloud1's current CEO Tuomo Riihentupa will continue with the company and will be responsible for customer management going forward. 

"We are grateful to Tuomo for his excellent work as CEO of Cloud1. The company transformed from a small consulting house into Finland's leading Microsoft Azure expert. Now, as growth accelerates further, the company will take the next growth leaps towards the Nordic top spot under Seppo's leadership," says Voland Partners CEO Veera Sylvius.

Companies Struggle with Data 

According to Kuula, in the next phase, companies must ensure that the rapidly growing amount of data is managed so that the collected data is effectively refined into a driver for business growth. Kuula states that this is a question where many organizations have stumbled in the past. Equally important is how change management within the organization enables business ownership of data and data management. 

"Without high-quality data, you cannot build analytics, data-driven management, digital twins, the metaverse, or value-producing AI. Organizations must ensure that the entire information system, from platforms to integrations and interfaces, is technologically compatible and built to support data quality."

According to Kuula, the current AI revolution leads to natural cooperation between machine and human. 

"If previously humans had to learn the machine's language, now the machine begins to speak the human language. When combined with modern low-code solutions in user interface development, organizations are presented with a development path towards AI-supported management and business process control," says Kuula. 

Additional Information 
Seppo Kuula 
CEO, Cloud1 Oy (8/24-) 
Phone: +358403700032 
Email: seppo.kuula@cloud1.fi 

Cloud1 is a specialist company focused on data-driven cloud service solutions. Cloud1's services consist of Azure expertise, architecture design, agile development of analytics, data, and integration solutions, as well as advanced analytics and low-code solutions from Microsoft.