Oulu gets international Fab Lab conference for August 2027

The Fab Lab conference is an annual event that takes place somewhere in the world. This year the conference took place in Mexico. The conference is organised in partnership with the Fab Foundation. The average number of participants is around 800 people, just over half of which are international guests. 

Oulu aims to become one of the top five congress cities and to strengthen its position as a city of events, meetings and conferences. The Oulu Convention Bureau (OCB), the city's own meetings and congress bureau, provided expert and marketing support during this congress application process, too. 

In 2023, the City of Oulu became the first Finnish and the first major Nordic city to join the global Fab City network. The network aims to achieve more sustainable and innovative entrepreneurship, develop a circular economy, enable lifelong learning for all groups of citizens, and create a carbon-neutral future. The network provides its members with partnerships, tools, training programmes, resources and visibility on the Fab City theme globally. 

The Fab Lab is a global concept that originated at MIT University in 2001. The Fab Lab network comprises around 3000 laboratories around the world. In Finland, there are currently 12 labs, half of which are located in Oulu. 

In Oulu, the City of Oulu and the University of Oulu have Fab Lab activities. The City of Oulu has Fab Labs in the Hintta, Ylikiiminki and Yli-Ii schools, and at BusinessAsema. The University of Oulu has one super Fab Lab. In addition, the schools' Maker Space facilities, STEAM activities, and the Learning for a Sustainable Future activities support the overall project. Oulu City Library's digital library is also a Fab Lab like space. The Fab Lab activity develops dispersed manufacturing skills and resource-wise economy, i.e. it is strongly linked to future entrepreneurship and sustainable development. 

In the Education and Cultural Services, the Fab Lab will target children, youth and other residents. BusinessOulu targets businesses and job seekers. The University of Oulu's primary target group is students. The City Library's digital workshop is open to all.