Techleap

#StateOfDutchTech Last week, we brought together 550+ founders, innovators, investors, and policymakers to discuss the strategic choices we must make to stay relevant in a time of rapid technological change. Where it was the fifth time, this year the vibes were different. After Macron Launching the 109B euro investment in AI just 2 days before the event, you could feel the urgency to act in the Netherlands too by the Prime Minister & Dirk Beljaarts 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿: invest in tech, innovation, and talent. Scaleups are the employers of the future—if we don’t invest now, we risk becoming mere consumers of tomorrow’s breakthroughs. We also launched the State of Dutch Tech Report, a data-driven look at 2024’s tech developments in the Netherlands compared to other leading ecosystems --> 𝗟𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 A few key takeaways: 📉 Shift in investor activity – Dutch investors are stepping back from €50M+ rounds, with EU & US investors filling the gap 🚀 Deeptech is thriving, driving scaleup success 🤖 AI funding lags, limiting Dutch AI companies’ ability to scale 💼 Scaleups are major employers, but rising attrition is increasing the demand for talent In the session with Onno Zoeter, Floor Eigenhuis & Ben Zevenbergen we discussed how Booking.com & Google are already implementing AI and how they are educating their organizations, deciding how to do so responsibly. 𝗞𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗔𝗜 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘆: 𝘁𝗿𝘆 𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝘁, 𝗮𝗱𝗼𝗽𝘁 𝗶𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂, 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝘆 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗲𝘁𝘆. 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗲𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗱. We are all responsible for creating a future we want to be part of Big shout out to Davinia Levie Myrthe Hooijman for making this such a successful year

Last week, after presenting at the State of Dutch Tech 2025, I received some interesting questions about startups: What drives startup formation rates?, Do startups actually benefit from joining an accelerator program? And, how does a founder's personality impact startup success? These are important questions—but the good news is, science has already answered many of them...

𝗣𝘂𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗕𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝘁 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗗𝘂𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱: 𝗠𝘆 𝟯 𝗕𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 After almost six months of creative event planning, it all came together in just one day. And while the event itself may be over, I can only hope it sparked enough conversations to mark the beginning of something even bigger. As an event manager, I thrive on experimenting and pushing the boundaries—just like a tech founder, I should always be raising the ambition. With the trust and support of the entire Techleap team, I was able to bring countless new ideas to life. At some point, I lost track, but there were at least 15 firsts! Here are 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲 I’m particularly proud of: 📺 𝗔 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝟯𝟬+ 𝘃𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗧𝗩 𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗻𝘀 – Not just for decor, but fully integrated into the show’s visuals and videos, thanks to the incredible work of Monks. And a massive thanks to Nadia Gómez Molina and Menno Willigenburg for turning this vision into reality—it exceeded all expectations! 🔥 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗠𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗿 – A concept I’d been wanting to try for ages: a speaker who remained a secret until just five minutes before showtime. Thanks to Gregory Sedoc and Ben Van der Burg for believing in the idea—it worked! 🦾 𝗔 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺 𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 – Just three weeks ago, while watching WNL with my grandma on a casual Sunday morning, I saw Constantijn Van Oranje-Nassau and Andre Smith discuss CES and the Holobox. That was it! The perfect blend of retro tech (vintage TVs) and cutting-edge innovation (a hologram). Thanks to Holoconnects, we brought Clara Chappaz live from Paris onto our stage. This day will stay with me for a while—it was an honor to take the lead and take the leap. But no time to dwell too long... Up next: 𝗠𝗘𝗘𝗧 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗘𝗧 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀! Can’t wait. 🚀

Yesterday, we gathered with some of the brightest minds in the Dutch tech ecosystem at State of Dutch Tech 2025—an incredible event filled with insights, discussions, and connections. A huge thank you to everyone who joined us! We’ll be sharing key takeaways from the panels, so stay tuned. But first: The Report. 📊 The Netherlands has long been a hub for innovation, but staying ahead in an increasingly competitive global landscape requires more than ambition. It demands investment in cutting-edge technology, talent, and the right conditions for startups and scaleups to thrive. The State of Dutch Tech 2025 Report offers a data-driven look at the Dutch tech ecosystem in 2024—its strengths, challenges, and how it stacks up against other leading tech economies. 🔎 Key insights from this year’s report: 📉 Shift in investor activity – Dutch investors are stepping back from €50M+ funding rounds, with EU and US investors filling the gap. 🚀 Deeptech growth – Deeptech remains a key driver of scaleup success in the Netherlands. 🤖 AI funding challenges – Dutch AI companies lack the capital intensity seen in more heavily funded markets, limiting their ability to scale. 💼 Scaleups as employers – Scaleups are now established employers, with rising attrition increasing the demand for new talent. This report is essential reading for anyone invested in the future of Dutch tech. Download it now to explore the full insights! 📥 https://lnkd.in/d9R2f8wv

Techleap State of Dutch Tech just kicked off with an impressive agenda and line up with Speakers like; Prime Minister Dick Schoof Dirk Beljaarts Minister of Economic Affairs Clara Chappaz France’s Minister of AI and Digital Affairs Tim Knotnerus CEO at Agomab Therapeutics Marjut Falkstedt Chief Executive at European Investment Fund (EIF) Susanne K. Schorsch Partner at Amadeus Capital David Hogan VP Enterprise EMEA at NVIDIA Corinne Vigreux Vigreux, Co-founder & CMO at TomTom Tuur Elzinga Chair of FNV
…and many more inspiring voices shaping the future of tech To end with a bit of selfpromotion… when you combine all that tech power with a bit of Monks love you get the following video… Highfives to Techleap organization with Constantijn Van Oranje-Nassau and his team.

Nederlandse techondernemers slaan de handen ineen met een duidelijke boodschap: zonder actie lopen we achterstand op. Onze concurrentiepositie staat onder druk en de tijd om in te grijpen is nú! Steun dit en teken hier: TechVoorNederland.nl 🚀 Gister hebben founders tijdens de week van #StateOfDutchTech hun plan overhandigd aan Tweede Kamerleden in Nieuwspoort, samen met VNO-NCW en Techleap Dit staat op het spel: ✅ Een goede regeling voor medewerkersparticipatie, zodat startups en scale-ups toptalent kunnen aantrekken en behouden. ✅ Een toegewijd co-investeringsfonds om snelgroeiende bedrijven te ondersteunen. ✅ Een vereenvoudigde aanpak voor publieke financieringsinstrumenten. ✅ Fiscale stimuleringsregelingen om private investeringen in vroege fase tech te bevorderen. ✅ Snellere en betere processen voor innovaties. ✅ Een verplichte “Innovatiecheck” voor nieuwe regelgeving. ✅ Een arbeidsmarkt die flexibiliteit en zekerheid in balans brengt. ✅ Digitalisering van  overheidsdiensten om administratieve rompslomp te verminderen. ✅ Meer betrokkenheid van startups en scale-ups bij publieke techprojecten. Waarom is dit belangrijk? Omdat we zonder deze veranderingen het risico lopen achterop te raken. Frankrijk gaat fors investeren in AI en landen als het VK en Denemarken lopen al voorop in het ondersteunen van hun tech-ecosystemen. We moeten nu handelen om Nederland aan de wereldtop van innovatie te houden. Dit gaat niet alleen over startups en scale-ups. Dit gaat over banen, ons verdienvermogen en het behouden van Nederland als innovatiehub voor impactvolle bedrijven. Politici, beleidsmakers, investeerders en founders—laat van je horen. De tijd om de toekomst vorm te geven is nu! Morgen meer bij de de presentatie van het State of Dutch Tech rapport van Techleap 🚀

📢 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐍𝐄𝐖𝐒 📢 𝐖𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐎𝐢𝐥 𝐭𝐨 120,000𝐋 𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐞! 🌱🌍 Making us the 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐠𝐥𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 to successfully scale the production of 𝐨𝐢𝐥𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐚𝐭𝐬 𝐛𝐲 𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐮𝐩𝐜𝐲𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬 at 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥 120.000𝐋 𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐞. ✨ Just three years ago, we were working at benchtop scale. Last summer, we reached 5,000L. And now? We’ve hit 120,000L! 📈 Proving that sustainable, circular and local oils and fats production is feasible on a commercial scale. 💡 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐠𝐚𝐦𝐞-𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫? ✅ Proven scalability of a true drop-in replacement for palm and other tropical oils ✅ On the path to make sustainable alternatives cost-competitive ✅ Made from upcycled food industry side streams, reinforcing circularity and affordability. With palm oil demand growing 4% annually and no strategy to supply this sustainably, the need for alternatives remains critical. Our fermentation-derived oil is ready to 𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐠𝐚𝐩 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐳𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐢𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐚𝐭𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲. 👉 𝐎𝐮𝐫 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐩𝐬? We’re now running industrial-scale testing with commercial partners to validate performance and secure our first contracts. This is the final push before we build our 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭-𝐨𝐟-𝐚-𝐊𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐃𝐞𝐦𝐨 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲! 🏭💥 We invite 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝-𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬, 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐮𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬 to join us in this sustainable oil revolution. 🚀 We want to thank our investors for their support to make this milestone possible, a big thank you to Rubio Impact Ventures, Fairtree Elevant Ventures, Oost NL and Willow Capital Investments! Also, a big shout out to the hard work of the NoPalm Ingredients team under the guidance of Lars Langhout, Prof Dr Jeroen Hugenholtz and Jeroen Blansjaar. Check out the video for a special message from Lars and Jeroen itself. ➡️ 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞: https://lnkd.in/eRyVAMp3 #NoPalmIngredients #ScalingUp #IndustrialScale #SustainableOil #SustainableFat

Techleap is at its heart a community builder. We believe strongly that a healthy tech ecosystem has a community of founders at its core. A community of founders focussed on growing their ventures by drawing on the expertise in that community, and giving back to the community in return as they grow. Tomorrow, we will present the State of Dutch Tech to the collective of founders, investors, policy makers, governmental instruments, knowledge institutions and anyone else critical to the success of Dutch tech. I am incredibly pleased that we will also give back during the event - continuing our support of an organisation like KLABU and having students from Codam College coding school help out in the event. An ecosystem is a complex network and its health is predicated on many actors, with diverse missions. As we move into an area where global partnerships are redrawn, I am hugely proud of how team Techleap is rallying for Dutch Tech. I am proud of the partners we have in our corner. The State of Dutch Tech needs your support. #tech #stateofdutchtech #techleap #scaleups #startups

The State of Dutch Tech 2025 wouldn’t be possible without 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀. A special thank you to: 🎞️ Monks for creating the amazing videos and animations for this event, bringing our vision to life. 🎤 Booking.com, Loyens & Loeff, and Google for sharing your invaluable insights on stage. 📊 HelloPrint for helping us bring all the event’s printed materials and stationary to life – we can’t wait to share it with the world! And to Picnic Technologies, Adyen, bunq, IMC Trading, Miro, Nebius, Otrium, Mollie, Remote, TomTom, and Coolblue – thank you for your continuous support and for championing tech innovation in the Netherlands. 𝗧𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿, we’re shaping the 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 of Dutch tech. We couldn’t do this without you!

What impact could quantum technologies have on the energy sector? Prepare to find out... Today we launch a significant piece of work from the Infinity team: our new report, the Quantum Guide to Commercial Acceleration: Energy Industry. Based on in-depth conversations with energy companies, established quantum tech companies and startups, academics, and beyond, we explore: - How the energy sector is embracing quantum tech - Whether the market is ready - Challenges facing the deployment of quantum tech - Geopolitical considerations - Next steps for the quantum ecosystem ...and more. READ IT HERE: 👉 https://lnkd.in/dfVWbMEw 👈 Contributors include: ENEOS, Alliander, E.ON, Deloitte, Kvantify, Xanadu, and many more.... Thanks to everyone who took part - now please share it far and wide!