Dutch independent research organisation TNO has announced the launch of Scenexus, a startup focused on enterprise software for urban planning. The Hague-based startup has also raised €1.6M in funding from Eindhoven-based VC fund LUMO Labs to support the rollout of its software platform.
Sven Bakkes, Founding Partner LUMO Labs, says, “Scenexus is the inaugural investment from our newly established LUMO Rise Fund. We are very happy to be joining forces with TNO on this co-investment and support Scenexus going forward with the roll-out of their groundbreaking software platform, previously known as ‘Urban Strategy’.”
Jeroen Borst, co-founder and CEO of Scenexus, adds, “Our vision is to empower cities globally with our digital twin technology, enabling them to anticipate and shape the future of urban development, ensuring sustainable and vibrant communities for generations to come.”
“With LUMO Labs and TNO, we have the additional capital, expertise and support we need for our next steps to turn this vision into reality.”
Making urban complexity manageable
Founded in 2024 by Jeroen Borst, Walter Lohman, Bart Vuijk and Peter van Oorschot, Scenexus provides a Software-as-a-Service solution that uses digital twin technology to generate insights into challenges and developments in urban areas.
The platform allows decision-makers, planners, and engineers to evaluate the impact of their proposals in minutes. Scenexus’ software platform creates digital twins of cities or regions by combining multiple data sets. Planners and engineers use the platform to evaluate the impact of ideas and changes.
Cities such as Amsterdam, San Diego, Singapore, and Breda use this technology to address challenges related to housing, congestion, and the environment.
Scenexus’ platform leverages GPU-based algorithms to process thousands of calculations in parallel, delivering results up to 1,000 times faster than traditional planning software. This enables clients to complete more projects annually by reducing planning and development time.
The platform analyses the impact of urban developments across multiple factors, including traffic, livability, resident sentiment, financial growth, safety, greenhouse gas emissions, and well-being.
Andy Lürling, Founding Partner of LUMO Labs, says, “Digitalisation holds the key to solving many of the social, environmental, and economic challenges we face today. Successful and sustainable digitalisation requires the combined and continued impact of multiple cross-sector systemic innovations beyond the individual user.”
“This is certainly true for Scenexus. With Scenexus, cities directly save time, money, and effort, and uncover unforeseen challenges before they arise. At the same time, it enables lasting improvement of the city’s livability and safety and the well-being of residents and visitors.”
What does TNO offer?
TNO is an independent research organisation based in the Netherlands. It offers a wide range of advanced technological and scientific solutions. TNO’s primary focus is on applied science, supporting industry and government with innovative, practical knowledge.
TNO aims to boost Dutch R&D and innovation investments to 3 per cent of GDP, a 30 per cent increase from 2022, primarily driven by businesses. It focuses on areas of expertise, guided by societal needs, market demands, value chains, and global competition, to turn inventions into successful innovations.
Speaking about the investment in Scenexus, Tjark Tjin-A-Tsoi, CEO at TNO, says, “At TNO, our mission is to pioneer breakthrough technologies that tackle society’s most urgent challenges. Scenexus, a TNO spin-off, exemplifies this commitment.”
“As part of our strategy, we take an active role in nurturing and empowering spin-offs and deeptech startups, guiding them toward rapid growth and meaningful impact—often in close collaboration with visionary venture capital partners like LUMO Labs.”
Brief about LUMO Labs
Founded by Andy Lürling and Sven Bakkes in 2016, LUMO Labs transitioned from angel investing to managing its first fund in 2020 before introducing the LUMO Rise Fund. It is recognised for its diversity, equity, inclusion profile and active involvement in the Dutch startup ecosystem.
The firm’s LUMO Rise Fund, a €100M venture capital fund, invests in startups from pre-seed to Series A stages. It focuses on scalable and financially sustainable systems, infrastructures, and platforms connected to technologies like AI, Blockchain, IoT, Digital Security, and Extended Realities.
The fund supports solutions addressing social and environmental challenges aligned with UN Sustainable Development Goals, including Health and Wellbeing, Quality Education, Sustainable Cities, and Climate Action.
Its primary investment regions are Benelux and Germany, with a secondary focus on the Nordics, Baltics, and Iberian Peninsula.
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