The Dutch caretaker government announced that it is planning to invest over €500M in the country’s technology sector starting in 2026.
The plan will be unveiled on Budget Day, scheduled on 16 September 2025. According to FD.nl, the Ministry of Economic Affairs will make the additional contribution.
The news comes a couple of months after the Dutch government, in partnership with the Groningen/Noord-Drenthe region and European partners, announced a €200M investment to establish a national AI Factory in Groningen.
Around €230M will be provided for the chip sector through public funding for a European project called IPCEI (Important Project of Common European Interest).
This initiative involves large-scale collaborations between companies and research institutions, focusing on innovative technologies, production chains, or infrastructure deemed strategically important for the EU, adds the report.
This funding aims to support Dutch companies and knowledge institutions.
Support for startups and scale-ups through EU projects
Additionally, the Ministry of Economic Affairs has decided to set aside another €200M for the growth of Dutch startups and scale-ups through the European Tech Champions Initiative, says the report.
This follows an earlier €100 million government investment in 2023. The fund is designed to help innovative companies grow into larger, globally competitive businesses.
Last year, ten CEOs of Dutch scale-ups urged the government to pay more attention to the innovation climate in the Netherlands.
“Scale-ups are the most difficult to finance of all types of companies,” Johan Feenstra, CEO of Smart Photonics, said last year in the FD.
According to the report, the decision comes amid the concerns that the Netherlands is falling behind the United States in helping young companies grow, according to the report.
“Startups need less money and can rely on venture capital funds, while more mature companies with revenue can easily turn to private equity,” said the CEO of the photonic chip maker. “But companies in the middle phase, which need a lot of money for a long period without revenue, have difficulty raising that money. That’s why the government should play a role in this phase when it comes to key technologies.”
