Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2022: 5 Key Takeaways for NL

Amsterdam-Delta* is now the top-ranked startup ecosystem in the EU! 🥇

We overtook Berlin and Paris and stayed ahead of Stockholm (and thanks to Brexit London isn’t considered EU anymore 🙄). 

Here’s why:

• NL tech experienced year-on-year growth of 200%+ 🚀
  
• The total value of our tech co’s increased from $10-$100 billion from 2010-21, making it the fastest-growing in Europe 📈
  
• The Netherlands is open and dynamic, with a business climate welcoming for startups and a talent pool that’s highly educated and multilingual. 🙌

*Amsterdam-what?
‘Amsterdam-Delta’ refers to Amsterdam and its surrounding area (+100km around), including Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht. It’s a relatively small region, but as a startup ecosystem it packs an increasing punch (the now #1-in-EU-punch in fact)! 🥊 

Number 1 in the EU is great, to be sure. But the US and Asia (together with Tel Aviv) still dominate the top 10. 

In fact, even though we top Europe now, some rapid movers (like Seoul) caused Amsterdam to drop one spot in the overall rankings from last year to the 14th. 

Not that 14th in the world is nothing to sneeze at - especially when you consider that Amsterdam ranks 474th in the world when it comes to city populations.

Amsterdam-Delta’s Cleantech Startups had a particularly strong 2021. 

Picnic raised €600 million from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to further its ambition of building the most sustainable European grocery delivery company. 

And urban e-bike company VanMoof raised a €108+ million Series C. 🚲

As mentioned, Amsterdam-Delta is much more than just Amsterdam. It was great to see Rotterdam getting some love in the report!

Here’s some of what they found:

• Rotterdam hosts a thriving community of 1,600+ startups, with prominent clusters in Smart Logistics, Life Sciences & Cleantech
  
  
• The city contains several “serious playgrounds,” such as BlueCity and Makers District, which foster a collaborative business environment for entrepreneurs
  
  
• With the support of its programs, initiatives, and organizations, Rotterdam’s startup scene is driving a transition toward a future-proof economy — digital, circular, carbon-neutral & diverse. 🙌

Techleap.nl’s take: The news of being #1 in the EU is as trivial as it is fantastic! Benchmarks are flawed, but we’ll take it. This gets noticed and will only add to the buzz around tech in Amsterdam and The Netherlands. 😉 

But, there is definitely still room for growth and improvement in areas such as knowledge, market reach, and performance. It is essential for our tech scene stakeholders, especially the government, to keep investing and developing these areas.

Our Prediction: Amsterdam-Delta to crack the top 10 in 2023! 🤞

Read the full 2022 Global Startup Ecosystem Report