Connecting the State is the annual conference of Digital Iceland, focusing on the digital future of the public sector. The conference will take place on September 18, 2025, at Hilton Nordica and will also be streamed online.
This year's theme centers on security and digital leadership during turbulent times, with keynote speakers including representatives from Ukraine. Confirmed talks are from the Icelandic Police, the National Electoral Commission, and Digital Iceland.
Additionally, a range of engaging presentations will be offered by institutions that have achieved notable success in their digital transformation and service delivery.
Connecting the State 2025
Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir, Minister of Foreign Affairs
Birna Íris Jónsdóttir took over as the CEO of Digital Iceland in November 2023. She is a computer scientist by education with an MBA degree and a diploma course in positive psychology. Before joining Digital Iceland, she held key positions in IT departments at Landsbankinn, Sjóvá, Högum, and Össur. In her free time, she runs and occasionally hikes.
The title to Birna's talk is Loose debris and rockfall: Uncertainty and challenges of our digital future.
Valeriya Ionan is a digital and innovation strategist, and Advisor to the First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine — Minister of Digital Transformation on Innovations, Digitalisation and Global Partnerships.
As former Deputy Minister at the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, she helped lead Ukraine’s digital revolution, building products within Diia Ecosystem and shaping global tech diplomacy, as well as WINWIN, Brave1, United24 Media, and other flagship initiatives. She also led key national initiatives: EU integration, Diia.Business, Diia.Education, regional digitalisation, CDTO Campus, Digital State UA, and the launch of GGTC Kyiv in partnership with the World Economic Forum.
Valeriya has been recognized among the top future leaders by Mastercard Legacy,EYL40, ISF Fellow, Vogue Leaders, and UP100. She believes in breakthrough economic growth through innovation and has a background in entrepreneurship, management, and marketing.
Hlynur Bjarki Karlsson is the Chief Data Officer at Digital Iceland. He is a computer scientist with an MBA from Reykjavík University and has extensive experience in data exploitation. Previously, he worked at CCP, Sainsbury’s, and Marel, among others, where he participated in and led data processing improvements
Ólafur Ingþórsson is the Cloud Solution and Security Manager at Digital Iceland. He is an engineer by training with an MSc degree from the University of Maryland and has worked for many years as a manager and consultant in information and telecommunications technology. Previously, he worked at Origo, CCP, and Síminn, where he managed numerous development, implementation, and operational projects.
Rannveig Þórisdóttir is a director at the National Police, where she is responsible for IT and technology issues for the office and customer service for the police. She has participated in digital developments within the police, especially the development that has occurred in the digitization of services to the public. Rannveig has an MA in sociology from the University of Iceland, and her research has focused primarily on the public's experience of and trust in the police
Her talk is titled: Space within a framework – a digital journey with security as its guiding light
Kristín is a lawyer from the University of Iceland and an LLM from Lund University. Most recently worked as an associate professor at the Faculty of Law at RU, and before that as a legal advisor to the Minister of Justice. Has served on various boards, including the board of the Courts Administration, the Competition Authority, and the Financial Supervisory Authority.
Ástríður Jóhannesdóttir is the Director of the National Electoral Commission and has extensive experience in public administration. She is a lawyer by training with a postgraduate degree in public administration (MPA). In her role at the National Electoral Board, she leads the daily operations of the National Electoral Commission, which oversees the conduct of elections and is responsible for the implementation of electoral laws.
Her talk is titled: Digital Courts and Legal Security
Guðmundur Arnar Sigmundsson has served as the head of the CERT-IS cybersecurity team for the past 4 years, leading the team's rapid expansion in support of the country's critical infrastructure.
He holds a master's degree in telecommunications with a special focus on computer security from the University of Karlsruhe in Germany. Before his work at CERT-IS, he worked in system and network operations at Vodafone and Origo, as well as being a network and security architect for the telecommunications giant Ericsson in Sweden.
He lives with his wife and three sons in Mosfellsbær and enjoys water sports around the island of Sørvágur, where the family's summer home is located.
On the morning of the conference day, workshops will be held covering topics such as public service, technical environments and development, Ísland.is, the benefits of digital projects, and the future vision for the government's digital journey. These workshops are by special invitation and will include participants such as directors, service managers, web managers, and technical leads from public institutions, as well as company representatives. The goal of the workshops is to make a focused contribution to the digital development expected in the coming months.
The workshops will take place from 10:00 to 12:00, and the main conference will run from 13:00 to 17:00.
Ticket prices this year are 9,900 ISK for attendance in person and 3,900 ISK for online streaming.
