The year 2021 marks the 25th anniversary of RUG Ventures, formerly known as the RUG Houdstermaatschappij. RUG Ventures is an early stage investment company that, as a subsidiary company of the RUG, helps entrepreneurs turn their ideas into flourishing businesses. To celebrate this milestone, RUG Ventures launched a new website with a brand-new name, in order to create a fresh image that fits with the changing needs of the ecosystem. (www.rugventures.com)

Since its start in 1996, RUG Ventures has invested in over 80 startups. Most of the startups, some examples including PolyVation, Organ Assist and Diataal, have grown to be full-fledged companies and many have landed in the North of the Netherlands, where they are actively working together with RUG and UMCG research groups. This has not only created a lively interaction between the university and the business world, which proves fertile ground for new ideas and startups, but it has also positively impacted the regional labor market of the Northern Netherlands.

Throughout the years, RUG Ventures has come to play a crucial role in the valorization process of scientific knowledge originating from the RUG and has established itself as the very much needed bridge between science and business. With its intentionally broad focus, RUG Ventures is open to new ideas, to new ways of seeing the world and to new visions of how to tackle the challenges our society faces. In the coming years, RUG Ventures plans to continue on its successful course and to carry on adding value to the society of the Northern Netherlands.

Source: RUG Ventures
Photo: Reginar Photography