Three years of NXTGEN Hightech: from ambition to visible impact
Exactly three years ago, NXTGEN Hightech began with a clear ambition: to strengthen the Dutch high-tech ecosystem and accelerate innovation to the market. Today, we can proudly say that this ambition is visibly becoming a reality. Thanks to intensive collaboration between companies, knowledge institutions, and other partners, an ecosystem is emerging that not only grows in size but also becomes more powerful and international.
“It's impressive to see what we've achieved together in three years,” says Monika Hoekstra, managing director of NXTGEN Hightech. “We see innovations accelerating, companies growing, and collaborations emerging that were previously unthinkable. And these developments are truly making an impact!”
Unique approach with concrete results
The program is already visibly contributing to the realization of an internationally leading high-tech equipment ecosystem. This is an important step towards securing our future earning potential. The initial results speak for themselves: after three years, the first dozens of demonstrators have been delivered across multiple projects, the number of patent applications is above expectations (more than 100 in three years), and the first innovations are already finding their way to the market (the first Letters of Intent with potential customers have been signed). With support from the National Growth Fund, established companies are strengthening their global market positions, while our startups/scale-ups are increasingly successful in accelerating and scaling innovations and attracting external financing (partners have raised €360 million in the past three years).
Participation in the program and the so-called ‘mid-TRL (technology readiness level) investments’ are opening new doors for many participating companies (more than 300) and are key to future market success. With these innovations in high-tech machines and systems, we are also contributing to higher labor productivity (think hands-free agrifood production and/or autonomous factories of the future). The program thus demonstrates that it is possible to stimulate the development of new highly productive economic activity – a key pillar for strengthening the Dutch economy – in a targeted and coherent manner.
An ecosystem that grows and connects
Equally important is the development of the ecosystem itself. Collaboration between domains is becoming increasingly intensive, leading to more cross-pollination between projects and partners and a growing community where knowledge and experiences are actively shared. The importance of this was widely emphasized and recognized during the first national Ecosystem Summit organized by NXTGEN Hightech earlier this year.
The connection with science also plays an important role. Through successful NWO open calls, new research projects have been initiated and awarded, further strengthening the technological foundation of the Dutch high-tech equipment ecosystem.
“The strength lies in the connection,” says Hoekstra. “We see it in so many projects: the enthusiasm and willingness to achieve something together is enormous. That collective feeling greatly contributes to faster innovation – and as a result, ideas flourish more quickly and better.”
Broad impact and solid foundation for the future
NXTGEN Hightech is well on its way to contributing to strengthening the Netherlands' earning power, addressing social challenges, and – through new equipment/machines – increasing the productivity of the Dutch industry.
Meanwhile, looking ahead remains essential. In the coming period, the focus will be on further strengthening business cases, market-product combinations, and bankability, so that innovations are not only developed but can also be successfully scaled up.
“Together, we've built something to be proud of, but a complacent, laid-back attitude is absolutely not an option at NXTGEN. We're moving full speed ahead!” concludes Monika with a smile.