HighTechXL

HighTechXL is a deep-tech venture builder, located in Eindhoven, the Netherlands. HighTechXL was established in 2014-15 on the High Tech Campus Eindhoven.[1] HighTechXL is supported by the Eindhoven Startup Alliance, a dedicated partnership including ASML, Philips, Ernst & Young, NTS, ABN Amro and several other stakeholders. For example, Peter Wennink (CEO of ASML) said in 2015: “In its turbulent early years, ASML experienced first-hand how important a support system is for a young company. Supporting HighTechXL is our way of giving back to the community. In addition, we have the experience that these young companies can contribute: startups are a great source of ideas. Strengthening the high-tech hardware ecosystem, finally, is in our interest because we rely on a network of innovative suppliers and technology partners to continue our technology leadership.”[2]

The initial set-up of HighTechXL was to recruit and select startup teams that already have a promising technology with the potential to grow into a successful business, and support these teams with various resources. At a later stage, CERN, European Space Agency and other research institutes invited HighTechXL to build ventures from their high-tech inventions.[3][4] HighTechXL thus adapted its approach so that it could also start with a new (typically patented) technology, to subsequently build a team and support this team in developing the venture.[5] In the period 2015-2019, HighTechXL raised over 90 million € in funding and built 66 ventures, of which 17 are in the ‘star’ segment (i.e. ventures with at least 10 times ROI). In a recent report by Perception Box, HighTechXL is ranked in the top five of startup accelerators worldwide.[6]