SPEAKER 2025
Kaj Arnö
Executive Chairman of the Board, MariaDB Foundation
About Talk
MariaDB in Practice: Community, Education, and AI with Vector Search
The workshop will showcase how MariaDB brings together a global open-source community, a strong educational program, and cutting-edge technical innovations like vector search. Participants will gain insight into community-driven development, opportunities for students and universities, and practical examples of how MariaDB Vector is applied in real-world use cases.
TRACK: WORKSHOP
5th Nov 2025 | ROOM 3 | Time: 3:30-6:30
About Speaker
Kaj Arnö is a seasoned software industry leader, database industry veteran, and Open Data champion, with decades of experience shaping global technology ecosystems. He is the Co-founder of MariaDB plc, having served as CEO of the MariaDB Foundation from 2019 to 2025, and currently holds the role of Executive Chairman. He is also the Founder and Chairman of Projekt Fredrika and a board member of Schildts & Söderströms.
Kaj’s career includes pivotal leadership roles at MySQL AB, where he served as VP of Professional Services, VP of Engineering, CIO, and VP of Community Relations. Following the acquisition, he became MySQL Ambassador to Sun Microsystems and later Sun’s VP of Database Community. Earlier in his career, he founded Polycon Ab in Finland, serving as its CEO and main entrepreneur for 14 years. In addition, Kaj is a respected columnist and contributor to various industry publications, recognized for his thought leadership and advocacy for open technologies.