Government puts €360 million more into high-risk tech fund

The government and state-backed investor Invest-NL are putting an extra €360 million into a fund for high-risk technology start-ups, as the Netherlands tries to reduce its dependence on chips and other critical technology from outside Europe.

The injection takes the Deep Tech Fonds, set up in 2022, to €610 million, economic affairs minister Heleen Herbert told MPs on Thursday.

The fund invests in young companies working on technology such as semiconductors, photonics, quantum computing and AI, which typically need large amounts of capital and take years to bring a product to market.

The ministry is adding €130 million and Invest-NL €230 million, meaning each now contributes €305 million. The original €250 million has largely been spent, the Financieele Dagblad reported, going to 14 companies including chip firms Axelera AI and Nearfield Instruments and quantum chip maker QuantWare.

“These are exactly the companies that can make the biggest contribution to our future earning power, reduce dependencies and solve major social challenges,” Herbert said in a statement. The ministry said the fund’s investments so far have attracted almost €400 million in private capital alongside the public money.

Funding gap

The extra cash comes as concern grows about Dutch and European reliance on American and Chinese technology, highlighted by the government’s intervention last year in Chinese-owned chip maker Nexperia, which triggered a diplomatic row with Beijing.

A report published this week by tech lobby group Techleap found European deep tech companies raise between 3.4 and 4.2 times less per funding round than their American counterparts.

In the Netherlands, 71% of first investments in such firms come from public money, the report said, calling for specialised funds of at least €1 billion and tax incentives for private investors.