ASML and Philips,with the help of a consortium of key technology and government stakeholders, announced earlier this week that they will form The Startup Alliance; a joint initiative that will support the high-tech hardware accelerator programs at HighTechXL. The name sounds quite a bit like the next installment of an Avenger’s movie – let’s hope the initiative will lead to tech to the likes of Iron Man suits.
Symbiotic relationship
The two leading global actors in high tech are supported by High Tech Campus Eindhoven, the City of Eindhoven and Brainport development, among others. The Eindhoven Startup Alliance will create a symbiotic relationship between high-tech startups and large-scale corporations in the Eindhoven Brainport Region. The alliance’s main objective is to accelerate at least hundred of high-tech hardware companies in four years. They vehicle that they have chosen for this ambitious goal is HighTechXL, an accelerator for high-tech companies located in Eindhoven.
Smartest square kilometer
HighTechXL supports promising hardware startup and scale-up teams, helping them to bring their technologies to market. HighTechXL operated from the so-called “smartest square kilometer in Europe” – the High Tech Campus. On the campus, over 140 companies and 10,000 researchers, developers, and entrepreneurs work together and are collectively responsible for nearly 40 percent of all Dutch patent applications.
Common goal
“We need to be more active in helping young technology companies to develop throughout the complete cycle: from idea to startup to scale-up,” says Guus Frericks, founder and CEO of HighTechXL. “An accelerator alone doesn’t cut it, we need to get every local initiative to work more closely together so we can achieve our common goal.”
Philips itself a startup
Hans de Jong, CEO of Philips Benelux: “125 years ago, Philips itself was a startup. We stand for innovation and entrepreneurship, and we believe that the future of successful innovation and growth lies in the collaboration between corporations and startups.”
