If the objective is for applied research (research for the benefit of the economy), I disagree. My main argument is that we need domain experts outside of academia.
Moreover, theoretical research in AI is very open and countries with limited resources are better off stand on the shoulders of giants than try and be number 1 themselves. Finland might never beat Russia/China/US AI arms race but they just need to defend themselves should any of these 3 countries monopolize or weaponize on AI.
I have a more informed perspective. First, Finland introduced a browser (Erwise) two years before the W3c browser. Second, the U.S. is stumbling in terms of getting beyond analytic and ANN designs, and AGI is an area where few in the U.S. work. I have worked with Finland on cutting-edge tech in the past, and I wouldn't be surprised if they made some serious breakthroughs. It does not take a lot of researchers to excell in AGI, it only takes one bricoleur. (source, inventor of the Internet browser.)
Moreover, theoretical research in AI is very open and countries with limited resources are better off stand on the shoulders of giants than try and be number 1 themselves. Finland might never beat Russia/China/US AI arms race but they just need to defend themselves should any of these 3 countries monopolize or weaponize on AI.