Trondheim Tech Timeline
"New" borough Brattøra with tech companies, business school, national administrations and research centres. Photo: Tormod Igelø Ellingsen
Trondheim has been nicknamed the ‘tech capital of Norway’ — and for good reason. NTNU has led the country's technology research since the beginning of the last century and today the greater Trondheim region is home to over 800 tech companies.
1900 – NTH founded
NTH (NTNU’s predecessor) opens its doors and Trondheim becomes the centre of technology education in Norway.
1950 – SINTEF established
SINTEF began as an offshoot of NTH and has been a leading research centre since its founding. Today, SINTEF is among the largest research institutes in Europe.
1968 – Dynamic positioning
Prof. Jens Glad Balchen (NTNU) discovers ways to improve ‘Dynamic Potioning’ – enabling ships to stay in place without anchors. Balchen commercialised and perfected DP with NTH, SINTEF, and Kongsberg in the ‘70s. In 2015, DP was voted Norway’s greatest engineering feat.
1976 – Doppler Ultrasound
Prof. Bjørn Angelsen (NTNU) invents a Doppler ultrasound device to measure blood flow velocities and builds the first units with NTNU students. Angelsen’s formula has been nicknamed ‘the E = mc2 equation of cardiology’ and NTNU remains to this day a world-leading centre in ultrasound technology.
1977 – Invention of Uglestad particles
Dr John Uglestad (NTNU) invents a method to create microbeads of the exact same size (0.5-500 μm), today known as ‘Uglestad particles’. The microbeads are essential to isolating cells, DNA, and mRNA, and aid the diagnosis and treatment of cancer.
1983 – Nordic Semiconductor
Four NTNU students found NS around their kitchen table in Flatåsen. Since the beginning, NS has been a huge player in wireless technology, especially Bluetooth. Today, the technology developed in Trondheim powers IoT and can be found in loads of consumer electronics.
1984 – Q-Free founded
Micro Design AS, later Q-Free, is established in Selbu in Trøndelag. Today, Q-Free is a prime mover in the world of sustainable transportation management.
1987 – GSM technology
The system developed by Torleiv Maseng and Odd Trandem at SINTEF is chosen to become the standard for mobile telephony. The Trondheim-developed solution beat submissions by tech giants and GSM launched a worldwide technological revolution.
1993 – 3D Ultrasound
The world’s first 3D ultrasound lab is opened in the Women’s Clinic of St. Olavs Hospital in Trondheim.
1996 – NTH becomes NTNU
NTH and five other institutions merge and become NTNU – which is today Norway’s biggest university with around 9000 employees and 42,000 students. NTNU works closely with the industry through its R&D partner SINTEF, providing NTNU with the biggest industrial link out of all the technical universities in the world.
1996 – AVR microcontrollers
NTNU students Alf-Egil Bogen and Vegard Wollan create the AVR architecture and international microchip giant Atmel begins production of AVR microcontrollers. They are essentially an advanced version of a microcomputer and are today used in touch screens, home automation, medical devices, etc.
1997 – Internet search technology
The world-famous search engine company FAST Search & Transfer is founded, based on technology developed by Prof. Arne Halaas (NTNU). The Norwegian newcomer led to Google and Yahoo establishing their own development centres in Trondheim. In 2010 the company was acquired by Microsoft.
2005 – First 4K cinema
Trondheim hosts the world’s first 4K cinema screening for a general audience. SONY donated the world’s first 4K digital cinema projector to NOVA Kino, through NTNU partnership.
2006 – GPU revolution
In 1998, five NTNU students began designing chips to revolutionise mobile graphics. In 2006, ARM acquires their startup for incredible sums and the Trondheim office is today the cornerstone of its multimedia unit. ARM has almost 95% market share, so the
Trondheim-developed graphic chips can now be found in almost every phone on the planet.
2006 – Europe’s first surgical studio
St. Olavs Hospital opens a high-tech surgical studio to replace operating theatres. This allows students to study all aspects of live operations in great detail.
2007 – Digital identity leader
Signicat is formed in Trondheim out of Kantega. Today, Signicat is the leading provider of digital identity solutions in Europe and in 2021, it was on the Financial Times’ list of Europe’s fastest-growing companies.
2009 – Pocket-sized Ultrasound
Vscan, a pocket-sized ultrasound, is released and named one of the most important inventions of the year by Time Magazine. The machine was developed by GE Vingmed Ultrasound in cooperation with NTNU and St.Olavs Hospital.
2009 – First floating wind turbine
The world’s first full-scale floating wind turbine, Hywind, is launched outside of Karmøy by Hydro and Equinor. The technology was based on years of research by SINTEF, MARINTEK, and NTNU.
2012 – Founding of Kahoot!
Game-based learning platform Kahoot! is founded by Johan Brand, Jamie Brooker, and Morten Versvik in a joint project with NTNU. During the pandemic, it became an essential part of teaching worldwide and in 2022 it reached 7 billion non-unique players.
2014 – Nobel Prize
NTNU brain researchers May-Britt and Edvard I. Moser are awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine for their discovery of grid cells that provide the brain with an internal coordinate system essential for navigation.
2014 – Groundbreaking ceramic coatings
NTNU spin-off, Seram Coatings, is founded. The company is built on a world-first achievement, a method pioneered by Nuria Espallargas and Fahmi Mubarok to spray on industrial ceramic coatings. Overcoming this almost impossible challenge, the solution has garnered a lot of attention, especially from the aerospace industry.
Eelume is established as a spin-off from NTNU. The company makes unique snake-like robots that can solve tasks at incredible depths, for example, the fixing of underwater oil pipes.
2019 – Energy-positive building
Powerhouse Brattørkaia, Norway’s first energy-positive building, opens its doors in Trondheim.
2020 – Norway’s biggest supercomputer
‘Betzy’ is installed in NTNU in Trondheim. The new supercomputer increased the computing capacity available to Norwegian researchers more than fivefold, with a theoretical peak performance of 6.2 petaFLOPs.
2022 – First self-sailing passenger ferry
The autonomous passenger ferry ‘milliAmpere 2’ begins trial running shuttle traffic in Trondheim during Hyfer Fest. The ferry becomes the world’s first self-propelled electric passenger ferry to operate in urban waterways. The ferry was the result of NTNU research and spinoff company Zeabuz is commercialising the technology.
2022 – Satellite in orbit
NTNU’s research satellite, HYPSO-1, is launched into orbit from Florida. It’s the first research satellite made by a Norwegian university and its mission is to observe algal blooms in oceans and lakes.
2023 - The building of Norwegian Ocean technology centre begins
Set to revolutionize both industry and academia, this center is an innovative collaboration between NTNU (Norwegian University of Science and Technology) and SINTEF. The center broke ground in 2023 and represents an investment of 10 billion NOK (€850 million). When completed, it will be world-leading in various fields, including maritime energy systems, marine structures, and oceanographic research.
2025 - HAI health innovation centre
The establishment of HAI Health Innovation Centre marks a significant milestone in Trondheim's tech landscape, creating a hub for groundbreaking health technology. HAI brings together key players in healthcare, research, and innovation, with partners like Helse Midt-Norge, SINTEF, NTNU, St. Olavs Hospital, and regional authorities. Led by Trondheim Tech Port, the centre fosters collaboration to drive advancements in health and quality of life through innovative solutions.
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