SUPPORT OUR JOURNALISM: Please consider donating to keep our website running and free for all - thank you!

Norway

Crown Prince Haakon on technology visit to western Norway

Crown Prince Haakon in January 2021

This week it was western Norway’s turn to receive a royal visit. Crown Prince Haakon visited a county with a particularly great need for restructuring since much of the country’s oil, and gas activities are located there.

The first stop on the Crown Prince’s program was AutoStore, a company that makes robotic warehousing solutions for several large companies and has customers in 30 countries worldwide. The Crown Prince was shown around the premises of the head office located in the village of Åmsosen. Head of Department Synnøve Matre has been with the company almost since the beginning 25 years ago and gave the Crown Prince insight into how the robots have developed from the first to the last model. The Crown Prince also got to see a test system and how the robots quickly and efficiently pick up and place goods in a warehouse.

After the visit to Vindafjord, the trip continued to Haugesund Public Library, where 100 young girls were gathered for “Girl Tech Fest.” The fifth graders got to explore what technology can be used for, together with female supervisors from technology professions. The girls were given the task of programming, animating and making games.

During the visit, His Royal Highness said: “I hope you all have a great day and that you will be inspired to work more with technology and science in the years to come”.

Crown Prince Haakon has followed the entrepreneurial community for several years. At Gründerloftet in Haugesund, Innovation Norway had brought together a number of companies that contribute to export revenues through international growth and that utilize the technology developed for oil and gas to create new products. The Crown Prince was presented to entrepreneurs and companies who work with everything from app development to battery technology and offshore wind.

About author

Senior Europe Correspondent Oskar Aanmoen has a master in military and political history of the Nordic countries. He has written six books on historical subjects and more than 1.500 articles for Royal Central. He has also interview both Serbian and Norwegian royals. Aanmoen is based in Oslo, Norway.