Why Delft and Leiden stand out in European innovation and what that says about our ecosystem
Something is happening in South Holland. Four fast-growing companies based in the province were recently included in the Deloitte Technology Fast 50, a leading ranking that assesses companies based on revenue growth, innovation level, ambition, and scalability. Q*Bird, Zander Labs, LeydenJar, and Nearfield Instruments each stand out in their own way. Ideally, such companies scale within strong ecosystems, stimulating the emergence and growth of more startups. This creates a flywheel effect, where one success enables the next.
Multiple sources were used for this article, including EE Index 2025, RIS 2025 and ‘How South Holland Can Catch Up on R&D’.
Insight through structural benchmarks
To better understand the dynamics behind these company successes, we look at two structural benchmarks: the European Commission’s Regional Innovation Scoreboard (RIS) and the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Index (EE-Index), developed by Birch Consultants, Utrecht University and partners. Both reports offer valuable insights into how regions such as Delft, Leiden and Rotterdam perform in terms of innovation and entrepreneurship, while placing this performance in a broader European context. As the latest RIS states: “Regions are key engines of a country’s economic development.”
South Holland in the European context
According to the RIS, four Dutch regions — including South Holland — are ranked among Europe’s Innovation Leaders. A strong result, especially considering the competitive field of 241 regions. At the same time, the scoreboard shows that product and process innovations among SMEs are lagging. The share of innovative companies is declining, and private R&D expenditures remain below the European average.
Deeptech makes the difference
Still, there are promising signs. Q*Bird, one of InnovationQuarter’s portfolio companies, develops quantum-safe technology to secure critical infrastructure, including applications in the Port of Rotterdam. It was listed as a Rising Star in the Fast 50. One of the entry criteria for this category: at least €50,000 in revenue in the base year or a minimum of €1 million in raised capital.
In the DeepTech category, Nearfield Instruments emerged as a clear winner. In October 2024, the company raised an impressive €135 million in a Series C round — one of the largest deeptech investments in Europe. This confirms Nearfield’s position as the most valuable scale-up in South Holland. Entry criteria for this category are more demanding: at least €10 million in revenue or funding, and demonstrable development of proprietary hardware technology and IP.
Other nominees, including QuantWare, Qualinx and Orange Quantum Systems, are also putting South Holland on the map as a region where deeptech and quantum technology are accelerating.
Strong performance, but not guaranteed
These company achievements do not exist in isolation — but neither are they an automatic outcome of the regional ecosystem. Rather, they illustrate the presence of exceptional entrepreneurs and technologies, while systemic enablers such as R&D investment, knowledge valorisation and capital structures still lag behind.
One example is the indicator Innovation expenditures per person employed from the RIS. South Holland does not appear in the top 40 European regions, even though its knowledge and business potential would suggest otherwise.
Ecosystem quality: strong, but unevenly distributed
The Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Index focuses on the quality of regional entrepreneurial environments. In this index, Delft and Westland score particularly high; especially in leadership and networks, supported by strong knowledge institutions and close cooperation with industry. The Leiden-Bollenstreek region also consistently ranks in the top four.
At the same time, the EE-Index highlights substantial intra-provincial differences. Some parts of South Holland score structurally below average, particularly on leadership, networks and knowledge infrastructure. This points to the need for targeted reinforcement of the ecosystem, especially in regions lacking a strong knowledge base.
A regional and national approach is needed
Together, these two benchmarks provide insights and direction for targeted growth — at the level of individual startups and scale-ups, within the regional context, and in cooperation with other European regions. Within this landscape, InnovationQuarter supports innovative companies through strategic investment, access to facilities, and acceleration of innovation in sectors where South Holland can make a difference.
With the regional strengthening programme under the National Technology Strategy (NTS), the regional development agencies (ROMs) are working to connect key value chains to growth markets. Across 14 value chains, targeted interventions are being proposed to help companies innovate faster and more effectively. Here too, South Holland plays a key role.
What about the startups?
A positive takeaway: there is a strong correlation between ecosystem quality and startup density. Generally, stronger ecosystems host more startups. The Delft-Westland region stands out, with nearly 50 startups per 10,000 business establishments.
How do we continue to invest in the companies shaping our future economy? How do we ensure that more startups and scale-ups get the space and support to become the next Q*Bird or Nearfield Instruments?
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