€2.3 billion in investments in Dutch startups in the first half of 2026

The first half of 2026 was exceptionally strong for Dutch startups and scale-ups. According to the Dutch Startup Association (dSa), approximately €2.3 billion in investments were raised in the first six months of the year. That is virtually as much as in the whole of 2025 (€2.5 billion) and even more than the total for 2024.

The growth was primarily driven by a number of very large financing rounds in deep tech, AI, and quantum technology. The largest deals included:
- Nearfield Instruments (chip measuring equipment) with approximately €330 million;
- General Intuition (AI) with $320 million;
- QuantWare (quantum chips) with $178 million.
See also our overview of Venture Capital deals in the Netherlands

The first quarter was also strong, with nearly €1 billion in investments, more than double compared to a year earlier. Major rounds for Mews, Axelera AI, and RIFT, among others, played a significant role in this.

At the same time, dSa notes that success is unevenly distributed. Although the total investment amount is increasing, the number of investments in the earliest startup phase (pre-seed) is decreasing. Capital is increasingly concentrating on relatively mature companies raising funding rounds of tens or hundreds of millions of euros.

Conclusion: Dutch startups are currently attracting significant capital, particularly in deep tech, AI, and quantum. The investment climate is strong, but the influx of new, young startups remains a point of concern due to lagging early-stage financing (VFF). The significant role of government funds in the total investment amount is striking.