The main purpose of the Young Business Award, the biggest start-up competition in the country, is granting the title of “Best Young Company in the Netherlands”. The 12 semi-finalists will be announced on Monday. The field will be narrowed down to four finalists during pitch events in Groningen and Leeuwarden, and those finalists will face off during the YBA finale in Emmen on 28 June.
During the semi-finals on 27 March at MartiniPlaza and 24 April at De Harmonie, six start-ups will go head to head. The jury, led by Gerard de Boer from Top Dutch, will select two finalists at each event to compete for the title of “Best Young Company in the Netherlands” and a cash prize of 15,000 euros during the finale at the ATLAS Theater in Emmen on 28 June.
This year’s competitors for the Young Business Award represent the cream of the crop from the Dutch start-up scene: African Clean Energy, Hotelchamp, InvoiceFinance, Jungo, Mr. Chadd, My data factory, Seamore, Somnox, Storro, The Next Ad, Tiledmedia and We4Sea. Combined, the 12 finalists have brought in 25 million euros in investments.
“Only the very best of the best young businesses and start-ups get to pitch on the Young Business Award stage”, said presenter Jort Kelder during the Young Business Award 2017 finale. Kelder will also host the 2018 finale this summer.
The latest tech developments in the Netherlands are on display during the YBA. Last year’s winner was the Amsterdam-based start-up Media Distillery, a company that develops software to make online video content automatically searchable.
