Pirkanmaa Immigrant Entrepreneur of the Year Alaa Salonen turned care experience and IT skills into health technology

Pirkanmaan Yrittäjät, the regional entrepreneurs’ association, named MoniDose founder and CEO Alaa Salonen the Pirkanmaa Immigrant Entrepreneur of the Year. The awards were presented at the Entrepreneur’s Day gala on 5 September 2026. Tamperelainen, Akaan Seutu and Yrittajat.fi, the news site of the Federation of Finnish Enterprises, all wrote about the award and his story. This article brings together what they reported. Links to the original articles, all in Finnish, are at the end. Quotes are translated from Finnish.

Why he won

The jury’s citation reads: "Salonen’s entrepreneurship stands out for determination, continuous learning and the courage to develop technology that brings help and solutions to everyday problems in care."

According to Tamperelainen, Salonen has combined his experience in care with his IT skills into health technology that supports living at home, safe medication and the interaction between the client, their family and care staff.

From care work to health technology

Yrittäjät reports that Salonen came to Finland from Iraq as an asylum seeker in 2015. Technology, mathematics and coding had interested him since he was young, but the IT sector did not open its doors at first. He found work in care as a personal assistant.

The idea for MoniDose grew out of that care experience and a loss in his family. Salonen’s mother died in Iraq after being given the wrong medicine at too high a dose. It led him to look into the problems of medication safety more widely.

"I did not want to develop only the safety of medication dispensing, but a whole package: interaction, wellbeing and safety", Salonen told Yrittäjät.

MoniDose brings safe medication dispensing, automatic documentation, remote monitoring, alerts and communication between the client, family and care staff into one system. According to Salonen, the company is building the only dispenser on the market with two medication pouch rolls, which can serve either one person with a larger medication regime or two different users.

Built one step at a time

Salonen worked out the practicalities of starting a business himself and first founded a care company, Monihoiva. MoniDose followed in 2024. According to Akaan Seutu, he has founded three companies in Finland in total.

At first Salonen funded the development of MoniDose with income from his other company, built a team and brought in investors.

"I am proud to have an extremely strong team around me. We have built MoniDose together by combining software, electronics, product development, quality and regulatory expertise", Salonen says.

Support has also come from Finnish business services. Salonen gives special thanks to Business Finland and its expert Tuomas Planman.

The turning point came from the field. "The big change came when we were out in the field and listened to how things really happen. It is not enough to sit at a computer in the office and guess."

From Viiala towards international markets

MoniDose is based in Viiala, Akaa. Salonen considers Akaa a good place for the company because of its location, calm and costs.

The plan is to start in Finland, then expand to Sweden, Norway and Denmark, and later to the rest of Europe and the United States.

"Our goal is that one day a MoniDose device is in every home where an older person needs it", Salonen says.

Balance

An entrepreneur’s days are intense. Studying the Sámi language and playing billiards give him balance. Investors and mentors are practical supporters: "When I know there are experts around me whom I can call and who will help, it reduces stress."

What the award means

"We have done something right. I am truly grateful. It also shows that long-term work, learning new things and the courage to build new solutions pay off", Salonen says.

He encourages entrepreneurs to accept outside help and sees Finland as a springboard: "Finland can be a gateway to the world. I have seen that myself, because I came here from somewhere else."

The award does not change the product development timeline or the regulatory path. It is recognition for the whole team building the device in Viiala.

The other winners

The Pirkanmaan Yrittäjät awards for 2026 were presented in five categories. Tampereen Kulttuurikamari Oy was named Company of the Year, Jaakko Viitalähde Sole Entrepreneur of the Year and Topias Koistinen Young Entrepreneur of the Year. Tuuni Turula is Tampere’s Entrepreneur of the Year.

Articles about the award (in Finnish)

Quotes: Yrittajat.fi, 7 September 2026, and the award citation in Tamperelainen, 5 September 2026, translated from Finnish.