Whats going on in the Dutch startup scene?

News Summary

  • Most of the big players are here.CES is not a bullseye for some of the companies we have, especially the software companies, but there’s such a density of tech companies here that you find relevant contacts are really high.
  • We discussed the Dutch ecosystem, the role of government in stimulating innovation and the challenges the country is facing in helping companies to go from startup to scale-up.This interview has been edited for length and clarity.TechCrunch: Why are you here at CES?
  • In the Netherlands, we have support programs for scaleups or companies that are a bit further along, so a lot of what we do is to build connections, introducing them to founders or investors in the Bay Area, supporting them in as many ways as I can.
  • The U.S. is the biggest health market, for example, so for most of those companies, it’s important to get there early and build some relationships.
  • That makes me think, “Maybe cut the crap; I know what you want, so let’s just take the photo and get over it.”On the whole, I’m here to support companies.
  • I want to continue to build a relationship with the CTA [the Consumer Technology Association, which organizes CES] and help some of these companies by introducing them to corporates.
I find something very intriguing about members of a royal family working to further the startup scene for a particular country.In a magnificently frank conversation, I spoke with HRH Prince Constan [+2166 chars]