InnovationQuarter

What InnovationQuarter does

InnovationQuarter (Regionale Ontwikkelingsmaatschappij InnovationQuarter B.V.) is the regional development agency for the South Holland (Zuid-Holland) province in the Netherlands, founded in 2014 and headquartered at WTC The Hague with a regional office at CIC Rotterdam. The agency is structured as a Dutch private limited company (B.V.) with public shareholders — the Province of South Holland, the municipalities of Rotterdam, The Hague, Leiden, and other regional partners — alongside national and EU support. It operates across three service pillars: Innoveren (innovation support), Investeren (capital deployment), and Internationaliseren (internationalization), with a 130-person team organized around six sector programs (Energy & Chemistry, Maritime & Port, High-Tech Manufacturing & Aerospace, Digital Technology & Cybersecurity, Horticulture & Food, Life Sciences & Health).

Its core "technology" is a stacked regional capital and ecosystem platform. InnovationQuarter manages a lifecycle fund stack comprising UNIIQ (a €50M proof-of-concept fund anchored at knowledge institutions such as TU Delft, Leiden University, Erasmus MC and LUMC), InnovationQuarter Capital (growth capital), ENERGIIQ and the €100M Rotterdam Energy Transition Fund (ETF-R) for energy transition, and COL. On top of the capital stack it orchestrates sector fieldlabs (notably the Quantum Communication Fieldlab Rotterdam / QCFR launched June 2026) and joint programs such as LAUNCH2 (with the Port of Rotterdam) and QUST (Quantum & Semicon aan de Kust, the regional quantum/semiconductor network). The agency's revenue mechanics are hybrid: structural public funding from provincial and municipal shareholders forms the core operating budget; investment returns flow from portfolio companies (e.g., QuantWare, RIFT, Qualinx, Orange Quantum Systems, DOPS, FrostByte, Vivici, Carepool, Q*Bird, ExRobotics, Arceon, Nearfield Instruments); and earmarked public/partner budgets fund program services and internationalization work such as trade missions to India, Germany, and the UK.

Name

InnovationQuarter

Legal name

Regionale Ontwikkelingsmaatschappij InnovationQuarter B.V.

Website

https://innovationquarter.nl

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

InnovationQuarter is the publicly funded regional development agency (ROM) for South Holland, Netherlands. It invests in, supports, and internationalizes startups and scale-ups across hightech, maritime, and energy via a stack of regional funds (UNIIQ, InnovationQuarter Capital, ENERGIIQ/ETF-R, COL) and ecosystem programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Regional Development Services

NAICS

Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416), Management Consulting Services (54161)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), International Affairs (9721)

akta.pro primary industry

Science, Technology & Innovation Administration (National R&D Policy) (BPAIAAAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Trade, Industry & Economic Development Administration (BPAIAAAL)

Keywords

• Regional development agency
• Venture capital funds
• Innovation financing
• Startup investment
• Economic development services

Headquarters

HQ city

The Hague

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Investment Returns from Regional Funds: Equity and quasi-equity returns generated from portfolio companies funded through UNIIQ, InnovationQuarter Capital, ENERGIIQ and ETF-R. Returns are reinvested into new innovative ventures in Zuid-Holland.
2. Public Funding from Province and Municipalities: Structural funding from the Province of Zuid-Holland, the Municipality of Rotterdam, The Hague and other regional public shareholders, supplemented by EU and national grants, to operate the agency and its programs.
3. Business Development and Internationalization Services: Program-funded services for innovative companies and foreign investors, including trade missions, soft-landing support and investor relations, financed through earmarked public budgets and partner contributions.

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

InnovationQuarter is the regional development agency (Regionale Ontwikkelingsmaatschappij) for the South Holland (Zuid-Holland) province in the Netherlands. It supports innovative companies through three service pillars — Innoveren (innovation support and validation), Investeren (providing capital via its stack of regional investment funds), and Internationaliseren (internationalization and attracting foreign companies) — combined with sector-specific programs across energy, maritime, hightech, digital, horticulture and life sciences.

Product overview

InnovationQuarter is the regional development agency (ROM) for the Zuid-Holland province in the Netherlands. Its offering is not a single software product but a portfolio of interconnected services organized under three core pillars — Innoveren (innovation support), Investeren (investment), and Internationaliseren (internationalization) — backed by dedicated sector programs (Energy & Chemistry, Maritime & Port, High-Tech Manufacturing & Aerospace, Digital Technology & Cybersecurity, Horticulture & Food, and Life Sciences & Health). Capital deployment runs through multiple funds (InnovationQuarter Capital, UNIIQ proof-of-concept fund, Rotterdam Energy Transition Fund/ETFR, ENERGIIQ, and COL), while ecosystem-building is delivered through initiatives such as the QUST Network (Quantum & Semicon aan de Kust), the Digitalzh European Digital Innovation Hub, and participation in the Economic Board Zuid-Holland.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• UNIIQ: Proof-of-concept fund of €50 million that helps entrepreneurs in Zuid-Holland bring unique innovations to market, with InnovationQuarter acting as fund manager.
• InnovationQuarter Capital
• ENERGIIQ
• ETF-R (Energy Transition Fund Rotterdam / Energietransitiefonds Rotterdam)
• Digitalzh
• QUST (Quantum & Semicon aan de Kust)

Products and services

• UNIIQ UNIIQ is a €50 million proof-of-concept fund that helps early-stage entrepreneurs at Zuid-Holland knowledge institutions bridge from research to market-ready prototypes, providing seed-stage risk capital to validate innovations.
• InnovationQuarter Capital InnovationQuarter Capital is the main growth-stage investment vehicle of InnovationQuarter, providing growth capital to innovative companies in the Zuid-Holland region across life sciences, digital technology, clean tech and other priority sectors.
• ENERGIIQ ENERGIIQ is InnovationQuarter's energy transition program supporting startups and scale-ups developing clean energy solutions, connecting them with funding and industry partners in the South Holland energy cluster.
• ETF-R (Energy Transition Fund Rotterdam / Energietransitiefonds Rotterdam) ETF-R is a €100 million revolving investment fund of the Municipality of Rotterdam that finances innovative companies and large sustainable projects in the energy transition, with InnovationQuarter acting as fund manager.
• COL COL is a regional investment fund associated with InnovationQuarter's investment portfolio for the Zuid-Holland region.
• Digitalzh (European Digital Innovation Hub) Digitalzh is the European Digital Innovation Hub for Zuid-Holland, providing digital transformation support to SMEs and public organizations with a focus on digital technology and cybersecurity.
• Sector Programs (Energy & Chemistry / Maritime & Port / High-Tech Manufacturing & Aerospace / Digital Technology & Cybersecurity / Horticulture & Food / Life Sciences & Health) Six sector-focused programs organizing InnovationQuarter's regional support activities across Energy & Chemistry, Maritime & Port, High-Tech Manufacturing & Aerospace, Digital Technology & Cybersecurity, Horticulture & Food, and Life Sciences & Health, providing sector-specific business development, ecosystem access and program funding.

Quantifiable outcome

• Operates multiple regional funds (UNIIQ, InnovationQuarter Capital, ENERGIIQ, ETF-R) covering the company lifecycle from seed to growth, deployed alongside public shareholders.
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• Municipality of RotterdamflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerPublic shareholder and host of InnovationQuarter's Rotterdam office at CIC Rotterdam. Co-develops programs that strengthen the Rotterdam innovation ecosystem and support local companies.
• Municipality of The HagueflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerPublic shareholder and host of InnovationQuarter's headquarters at WTC The Hague. Co-develops programs that strengthen the The Hague innovation ecosystem, including hightech and impact ventures.
• Port of Rotterdam (Havenbedrijf Rotterdam)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint partner in the LAUNCH2 program that helps founders validate ideas with end users, customers and investors in the port ecosystem. Also co-develops innovation initiatives in maritime, energy and logistics.
• TU Delft (Delft University of Technology)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKey knowledge institution in the South Holland innovation ecosystem, collaborating with InnovationQuarter on technology transfer, talent pipelines, and sector programs such as quantum and hightech.
• TNO (Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerApplied research partner collaborating with InnovationQuarter and regional companies on applied research programs, technology validation and fieldlabs in hightech and other priority sectors.
• Maritime DeltacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDutch maritime innovation cluster ecosystem partner that InnovationQuarter works with to support maritime companies and coordinate sector programs in South Holland.
• QUST (Quantum South Holland network)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional network coordinating quantum technology activities and connecting companies, researchers and public stakeholders in the South Holland quantum cluster.
• Quantum Communication Fieldlab (QCFR) PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMulti-party fieldlab consortium developing quantum communication technologies with industry, research and public stakeholders; InnovationQuarter acts as ecosystem orchestrator alongside these partners.
• Economic Board Zuid-HollandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional economic policy body with which InnovationQuarter aligns on innovation agenda, regional strategy and impact reporting for South Holland.
• ZIE (Zuid-Holland Innovation Event) ecosystem partnersminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-organizers, sponsors and participating organizations of the regional ZIE event, used to showcase the South Holland innovation ecosystem and InnovationQuarter's portfolio.
• HortiRoad2India consortiumminorGTM or Marketing PartnerConsortium partner on the HortiRoad2India internationalization program, which helps South Holland horticulture and agri-tech companies explore opportunities in the Indian market.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Bpifrance: France's national public investment bank, providing financing, guarantees and innovation support across the entire company lifecycle. A larger, national-scale analog of InnovationQuarter's regional development + investment mandate.
• Catapult Network (UK): UK network of technology and innovation centers (e.g., Connected Places, Offshore Renewable Energy, Quantum) jointly funded by government and industry to accelerate commercialization. Comparable as a publicly-funded cluster orchestrator with sector-specific fieldlab programs similar to QCFR and FLIE.

Direct peers

• LIOF: Limburg Investment and Development Company (ROM for Limburg), managing regional venture and growth funds aimed at SMEs and scale-ups. Same institutional DNA as InnovationQuarter: provincial ownership, fund management and innovation support.
• NOM (Investerings- en Ontwikkelingsmaatschappij voor Noord-Nederland): Regional development agency for the Northern Netherlands (Groningen, Friesland, Drenthe), offering capital, advice and internationalization to innovative companies. Comparable as a fellow ROM with similar lifecycle fund strategy and public mandate.
• Oost NL: Regional development agency for the provinces of Gelderland and Overijssel, providing capital, business development and internationalization support to innovative SMEs. Closely comparable in GTM (relationship-led, fund-backed) and target customer (regional startups and scale-ups).
• Horizon Flevoland: Regional development agency for Flevoland, focused on funding and supporting innovative SMEs in the province. Comparable in mandate but smaller scale than InnovationQuarter.
• ROM Utrecht Region: Regional development agency for the Utrecht region, providing capital, talent and program support to innovative companies. Part of the same Dutch ROM network as InnovationQuarter.
• ROM InWest: ROM for North Holland, also structured as a public-private B.V. running multiple investment funds (including a seed fund and growth capital). Direct functional peer alongside InnovationQuarter in the national ROM network.
• BOM (Brabantse Ontwikkelings Maatschappij): Dutch regional development agency (ROM) for North Brabant, operating a comparable stack of investment funds and innovation programs targeting hightech and life sciences startups. Most structurally similar to InnovationQuarter in mandate, fund architecture and provincial funding model.
• Impuls Zeeland: Regional development agency for the Zeeland province, providing investment capital and innovation support. Smaller-scale but functionally similar ROM, useful as a structural benchmark.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/innoquarter
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/innovationquarter
• Facebookfacebook.com/InnoQuarter

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments86 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about InnovationQuarter