Wow! This past week on High Tech Campus Eindhoven was simply extraordinary. It included visits to The Strip by Dutch King Willem-Alexander, Minister Kamp and StartupDelta Envoy Neelie Kroes all within the space of 24 hours.
It was great to see the startup scene in Eindhoven getting the national and international attention it deserves. We were able to share ideas about why and what we’re doing right, and discuss ways in which the unique ecosystem here can drive change across the entire "West Coast" of Europe.
Interaction between networks becoming crucial
Over 200 policy makers, academics, corporates, VC’s and startups came to an inaugural meeting on Campus last week. The Global Government Venturing Summit turned into a frank exchange of views.
Eindhoven, in-fact the whole Brainport region, has a tremendous tradition for inventions and cutting edge technologies. But the key to how fast success happens internationally will be the interaction between people.
Mayor, Rob van Gijzel, cautioned the conference that we live in disruptive times. It’s easy to rise up the global rankings – but it is sometimes difficult to stay there. "Many people still don’t realize that the wealth of a region is often earned by activities happening outside that region."
There is clearly discussion going on between the various components that make up what the Dutch call the "Triple Helix". Government, academic research centres and large enterprises are good at building strong regional and national collaboration networks within their respective sectors. But the harder yet important challenge is to ensure cross-fertilization across these different cultures.
"We’ve been looking at ways to make the Brainport region not only a smart-region, but a place where the hottest start-ups can scale up and stay-up" says Professor Erik Vermeulen, of the department of business law at Tilburg University.
"Several corporations and recent spinouts have established this region as leading the world when it comes to being innovative and inventive. Following the lead given by Philips in 2003, we’ve witnessed how open collaboration within a trusted ecosystem can rapidly accelerate companies in bringing products to market. But we can do so much more."
"A good start-up climate is one in which there is a balance between exploration and exploitation. As well as research and development, great inventions need to have sufficient time, assistance and access to international funds to scale-up and thus reach a global market. I’m optimistic that we can achieve this. All the elements for success are in place."
