Arno Schäfer joins UpCloud as CEO

Seasoned executive to lead next stage of growth as Helsinki-based cloud infrastructure provider strengthens its position in the global cloud landscape.

Helsinki, Finland, March 31, 2025 – UpCloud Oy, a leading European cloud infrastructure provider, today announced the appointment of Arno Schäfer as its new Chief Executive Officer. Schäfer takes over from Antti Vilpponen, who has led UpCloud for the past 11 years.

With heightened geopolitical dynamics and renewed scrutiny around the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework, UpCloud is uniquely positioned to lead Europe’s cloud infrastructure sector. The company continues to challenge the dominance of hyperscale providers by offering a cost-efficient, high-performance, and privacy-focused cloud-native platform—built with data sovereignty and customer choice at its core.

Schäfer joins UpCloud with a proven track record in leading global software and technology companies through periods of strategic transformation, innovation, and growth. UpCloud adds significant executive leadership experience to the company and gains a leader who combines strategic transformation with entrepreneurial clarity to guide the company into its next phase of growth.

“I’m excited to join UpCloud at a defining moment for the cloud industry. The demand for trusted, locally anchored infrastructure is growing rapidly. UpCloud stands out through its focus on performance, transparency, and European values—offering data sovereignty and security with a truly global reach.” – Arno Schäfer, CEO, UpCloud 

“Arno is the right leader to drive our next phase of growth and joins us with a clear mandate to lift the significant opportunity to build on the strong foundation UpCloud has established in line with the rapid expansion of the cloud industry—where spending in Europe alone is projected to exceed $300 billion this year.” – Steve Midgley, Chairman of the Board, UpCloud.

“As an entrepreneur, I’ve set out to build a cloud hosting company that doesn’t just compete with the three biggest players in the world, but takes them on and wins in so many areas. Our journey since 2011 has been one of relentless innovation, listening to our customers, and ensuring our product meets their needs in the best possible way. Arno joins us at the perfect time, doubling down on our efforts to tap into the underserved segment—the European market is ready for a powerful, performance-driven alternative to the American tech giants.”  – Joel Pihlajamaa, CTO and Founder, UpCloud.

About UpCloud Oy

UpCloud is a leading European cloud infrastructure provider with a global cloud platform spanning 13 data centres across four continents. More than 10,000 clients trust UpCloud to run their mission-critical cloud-native workloads from European data centers, under the robust EU Regulatory Framework on Data, atop a cloud-native stack engineered for performance without compromise. 

Formed in 2011, UpCloud is headquartered in Helsinki, Finland, with a global team of more than 120 employees working across 17 countries. Learn more at upcloud.com.