Aalto Distinguished Professor Otto Toivanen on the Rewards of Research and Innovation

Aalto University has appointed Professor Otto Toivanen as Aalto Distinguished Professor for the academic year 2025. As a leading economist and researcher, Toivanen has made significant contributions to the fields of innovation policy, inventors, and the effects of invention at the individual level. His research has focused on regulation, companies, and markets, as well as competition in its various forms.

Professor Toivanen's journey began at the Helsinki School of Economics in 1997, where he served as a postdoctoral researcher and professor of technology management and policy. He later headed the Helsinki Center of Economic Research (HECER) at the University of Helsinki and has also worked at KU Leuven University in Belgium. In 2018, Toivanen was instrumental in establishing the Helsinki Graduate School of Economics (Helsinki GSE), which has achieved its original goals, including increasing the number of economics professors from 20 to nearly 40, with over a dozen different nationalities represented.

Key Takeaways:

• Professor Otto Toivanen was appointed Aalto Distinguished Professor at the opening of the academic year in 2025, recognizing his exceptional merits in the field.
• As a professor of economics at Aalto University School of Business, Toivanen's research focuses on innovation policy, inventors, and the effects of invention at the individual level.
• He served as the first academic director of the Helsinki Graduate School of Economics (Helsinki GSE) from 2018 to 2025 and has made significant contributions to the establishment of the school.
• Toivanen was a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Warwick and has held various positions at the Helsinki School of Economics, the University of Helsinki, and KU Leuven University in Belgium.
• He was a significant milestone for Toivanen was leaving his professorship to head the Helsinki Center of Economic Research (HECER) at the University of Helsinki in 2004.
• The Helsinki GSE Situation Room, established during the COVID-19 pandemic, has continued its operations as the VATT Data Room and produced information and analysis for ministries and other public bodies.
• Professor Marko Tervio took over as the academic director of Helsinki GSE on August 1, 2025, after Toivanen's seven-year tenure.
• Toivanen has also developed online courses, including a popular MOOC on the basics of economics called How Does the Economy Work?, and is currently developing a new MOOC targeting universities of applied sciences.
• He is on sabbatical for the academic year, allowing him to focus on research projects on pharmaceutical and healthcare markets, inventors, and cartels.

Statistics:

• 1997: Otto Toivanen joined the Helsinki School of Economics.
• 2004: Toivanen left his professorship to head the Helsinki Center of Economic Research (HECER) at the University of Helsinki.
• 2010: Toivanen became a professor at KU Leuven University in Belgium.
• 2015: Toivanen returned to Finland and became a visiting professor.
• 2017: Toivanen was appointed professor at Aalto University School of Business.
• 2018: Helsinki GSE was established, with Toivanen as its first academic director.
• 2021: The online course How Does the Economy Work? was launched, targeting secondary school students.
• 2025: Professor Toivanen was appointed Aalto Distinguished Professor, recognizing his exceptional merits in the field.

Sources:

• Aalto University's news release: "Aalto Distinguished Professor Otto Toivanen: 'The best thing is when you find an interesting problem and perhaps even a way to solve it'" (September 2, 2025)
• Professor Otto Toivanen's biography on the Aalto University website
• Helsinki Graduate School of Economics (Helsinki GSE) website