According to the 2024 Global Startup Ecosystem Report by Startup Genome, the Netherlands ecosystem is now ranked number 13 in the world — placing it ahead of both Paris and Berlin. In 2023, Dutch startups raised $2.2bn.
While there have been fewer startup deals this year, overall investment is up, according to figures from the Dutch Startup Association. And for some startups and scaleups, 2024 was truly a monumental year.
Picnic raises one of Europe's largest rounds
Having grown its business 40% in 2023 following international expansion across France and Germany, Dutch online supermarket Picnic kicked off the year in style as it announced a €355mn funding round in January. The Bill and Melinda Gates foundation participated in the round, which brought the company's total raised to €1.3bn. Founded in 2015, Picnic, its fully automated fulfilment centres, and delivery algorithms have defied the mass collapse of online grocery delivery startups that befell the likes of Getir and Flink after the pandemic. In 2018, the year before hitting 1,000,000 shoppers in the Netherlands, the company's CTO Daniel Gebler took the stage at TNW Conference to talk about the tech that is disrupting the “everywhere commerce” space.
Gebler also closed the year with a bang, as he was named CxO of the year by Computable.nl.
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DataSnipper reaches unicorn status
Its Series B $100mn raise in February saw Amsterdam-headquartered auditing platform DataSnipper valued at $1bn, aka achieving the mythical status of unicorn.
The round was led by Index Ventures and the funds are helping DataSnipper, which already counts Hilton, Siemens, and Frontier Airlines among its clients, to expand across more verticals including forensic accountants and tax advisors. DataSnipper was founded by Maarten Alblas, Jonas Ruyter, and Kai Bakker in 2017. In 2023, the company appointed a new CEO in Vidya Peters (on the featured image along with the founding team).
Peters was previously Chief Operating Officer at payment solution provider Marqeta, helping the company go public in 2021. She sees the long term objective of DataSnipper as connecting unstructured data across industries, and believes there is tremendous opportunity for growth and expansion globally.
Mews becomes a unicorn, €100mn fund by Carbon Equity
March was a month of celebration for current and former TNW Spaces member startups. Hotel management software provider Mews hit a €1.1bn valuation after a €101mn raise, led by Swedish investment company Kinnevik.
The good news for Mews, founded in 2012 by former hotelier Richard Valter, did not stop there. In September, the company bagged another €90mn from Vista Credit Partners.
Having already purchased nine other startups in the sector, the funds will allow Mews to continue its buying spree, consolidating its place as a market leader in redefining the hospitality industry with its cloud offerings.
Meanwhile, leading climate fund investment startup Carbon Equity raised €100mn for its Climate Tech Portfolio Fund II — exceeding an initial target of €75mn and more than doubling its first fund from 2022. Founded only in 2021, Carbon Equity has quickly become a force to be reckoned with for investments in curated clean tech solutions.
In October, Wired dubbed Carbon Equity one of the hottest startups in Amsterdam, and at the beginning of December, co-founder Jacqueline van den Ende was awarded the title of Changemaker of the Year by Change Inc, rounding off a momentous year. Let's hope climate tech investment continues to thrive in 2025.
First ever tech fund by Dutch Ministry of Defence
It is perhaps an unfortunate sign of the times we live in, but there is no denying that defence tech startups — from Ukrainian drone developers to German AI darling Helsing — are on a roll. In October, the Dutch Ministry of Defence announced a €100mn fund to provide early-stage financing to the country's startups, scaleups, and SMEs that meet specific innovation needs.
The fund will invest up to €5mn per company. It will focus on dual-use technologies, meaning tech that can be used both for civilian and military purposes. It is expected to open in 2025, so keep your eyes peeled for the first investments.
We can't wait to see what 2025 will bring as Amsterdam celebrates its 750th anniversary and TNW Conference returns to NDSM island in June. Join us as we bring together the whole Dutch tech ecosystem and discover what is truly next in tech!