Description
Within this particular brief outline relating to the accelerator and incubator ecosystem in europe.
Accelerators, incubators and so-called
“company builders” are innovative
investment vehicles and business
service providers that have made
a novel contribution to advancing
entrepreneurship around the globe,
helping an entire generation of young
companies, and particularly high-tech
startups, to grow, prosper and thrive.
These startup programmes have become
many young companies’ principal source
of knowledge and support; they are in a
position not just to help the needy, but to
encourage the worthy.
To have a complete picture of the different
entrepreneurial ecosystems around Europe and
a better understanding of the different initiatives
and best practices, Telefónica set out to map
accelerators, incubators and company builders in
leading European countries,
1
creating a first-of-
its-kind portrait of the relative density and scope
of accelerators and incubators in 10 key European
economies.
2
By mapping the different entrepreneurial
ecosystems we can understand the different stages
and needs of each ecosystem, gain first-hand
insights from local players through interviews, site
visits and conference calls and learn how to scale
up existing programmes to mobilise European talent
for startups. The results are fascinating (See the key
findings on page 2 and the map on page 4 for an
overview).
3
Page 1
The Accelerator
and Incubator
Ecosystem in
Europe
Principal authors:
Eduardo Salido, Marc Sabás and Pedro Freixas
Project team leaders:
Frédéric Michel and Dr. Javier Santiso
This research, conducted independently, forms part of a pledge to the Startup Europe Initiative of the European
Commission. For more information, visithttp://ec.europa.eu/digital-agenda/en/startup-europe.
The opinions expressed in this research paper are those of the principal authors and project team leaders alone
and do not necessarily reflect the views of Telefónica, the European Commission or any of their associates.
Page 2
Key Findings
1
Europe has a healthy and thriving early stage
startup scene.
2
Europe and the United States have a
comparable number of startup programmes per
capita. We found 260 startup programmes in
the 10 countries surveyed, compared to roughly
200 in the US.
4
Given the relative similarity in
population density between the two economic
areas (the US has a population of 316 million,
and the 10 countries surveyed here have roughly
361 million people). This means that, on a per
capita basis, Europe has roughly as many and
perhaps even more accelerators than the US.
3
The number of European accelerators and
incubators has increased dramatically since the
start of the financial crisis. Between 2007 and
2013, the number has risen nearly 400%.
4
The accelerator and incubator landscape in
Europe is diverse, with different geographical
models running on different principles. In the
United Kingdom and France, most accelerators
and incubators are concentrated around the
national capital while in other countries (i.e. Spain
and Sweden), the business startup programmes
tend to be spread more evenly throughout
the territory.
5
Information or benchmarks of the different
programmes is not easily available.
6
European accelerator programmes vary widely
in terms of the amount of equity they ask in
return for funding or for accepting a company
into their mentoring programme. The equity cost
to attend accelerator programmes also varies
greatly across and within countries.
7
Good, sound policy initiatives at the European
level could do much to boost the potential of
European entrepreneurs.
Page 3
Among the key policy recommendations which emerge from the study we identified the following
‘policy decalogue’:
1
When it comes to pan-European
entrepreneurship policies, the one-size fits-
all model does not fit. Policymakers must
implement different policies for centralised and
decentralised ecosystems.
2
Mind the funding gaps: Different ecosystems
have different needs – and different gaps
– when it comes to funding. Policymakers in
Czech Republic, Italy, Slovakia and Spain should
increase the amount of early seed stage funding
available to entrepreneurs. At the same time, all
countries surveyed should increase the amount
of so-called “Series A” and “Series B” funding
available to young companies.
5
3
Policymakers should boost sector-specialised
programmes by ensuring that they receive
at least 50% of available European funding
resources. An effort should be made to create
a balance between specialised and generalist
programmes of roughly 50-50.
4
European leaders should take decisive steps
to make country borders meaningless for
entrepreneurs. The full single market – 28
countries, 507 million people, €12 trillion of
annual gross domestic product – should be as
accessible for every startup as their home-
country market is.
5
Simplify and unite: Policymakers should reduce
bureaucracy and facilitate startup rollouts
across Europe.
6
Policymakers should increase transparency by
making comparable data in key areas more
widely available.
7
Policymakers should create incentives to
encourage competition and innovation among
euro-entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs should be
the new “rockstars.”
8
Close the loop: Policymakers should facilitate
connections between university hubs, research
institutes and business schools. They should
allocate around 50% of the beneficiaries of pan-
European funding in these types of institutions.
9
Policy should activate technical talent to get
involved in entrepreneurial ventures. One way
of doing so would be to create an “Erasmus”
programme for programmers, designers and
engineers with rotations across different
European countries, using startup programmes
as coordinating agents.
10
Measure all aspects of the socio-economic
impact that startups are causing to provide
greater transparency and to increase awareness
of the vital role startups play in creating and
sustaining prosperity.
Page 4
France
35
Germany
31
Sweden
22
Italy
23
Czech
Republic
11
9
Slovakia
Spain
38
UK
50
Ireland
20
Netherlands
21
Main European Hubs
by Number of Startup
Programmes
Source: Telefónica Global Affairs and New Ventures, 2013
We analysed the top seven countries by GDP in Europe (France, Germany, Italy,
the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom) and we added three
other interesting cases: Czech Republic and Slovakia, two examples of a nascent
entrepreneurial ecosystem, and Ireland, a small tight-knit community now living
a second wave of entrepreneurs after the late 90s.
Please note there are many other entrepreneurial initiatives and lively communities
in other European countries which have not been included in the scope of this paper.
Additionally, there are other aspects of entrepreneurial activity which have not
been covered due to our focus on startup programmes. A broader approach to
entrepreneurial ecosystems can be found at the Startup Ecosystem Report 2012,
Part One.
6
Page 4
Page 5
Entrepreneurship Ecosystems in Europe:
Alive and Kicking
Across the continent, Europe boasts a dynamic and healthy landscape of accelerator and incubator
initiatives. In this survey of 10 representative European economies, we identified 260 startup
programmes; in the US, there are approximately 200.
7
Therefore, from a quantitative standpoint, both
markets are comparable in terms of the number of programmes.
Interestingly, we found that most of these
programmes were launched after the financial crisis
struck in late 2008. The compound annual growth
rate for accelerators in Europe more than doubled
in the last 12 years to 29% post crisis, up from 14%
pre-crisis, and increased by nearly 400% since
the start of the crisis.
8
This reflects an impressive
counter-cyclical capacity of startup initiatives across
the continent.
Chart 1 Accumulated number of incubators and accelerators in the 10 survey countries
since 2001
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
'01-'07 - 14% CAGR
'07-'13 - 29% CAGR
Source: Telefónica Global Affairs and New Ventures, 2013
Table 1 Top seven European Union countries ranked by total GDP (2011)
Concept Unit Germany France
United
Kingdom
Italy Spain
Nether-
lands
Sweden
Total GDP Bn USD 3,400 2,608 2,440 2,014 1,352 773 526
GDP per Capita EUR / inhabitant 30,100 27,600 30,400 22,800 20,300 32,700 35,500
Population million people 81.84 65.33 63.26 60.82 46.20 16.73 9.48
Unemployment Rate Total (%) 5.5 10.3 7.9 10.7 25 5.3 8
Young Unemployment < 25 yrs (%) 8.1 24.6 21 35.3 53.2 9.5 23.7
Total Entrepreneurial Activity % adult population 5 5 9 4 6 10 6
Nascent Entrep. Activity % ad. Pop,
Within this particular brief outline relating to the accelerator and incubator ecosystem in europe.
Accelerators, incubators and so-called
“company builders” are innovative
investment vehicles and business
service providers that have made
a novel contribution to advancing
entrepreneurship around the globe,
helping an entire generation of young
companies, and particularly high-tech
startups, to grow, prosper and thrive.
These startup programmes have become
many young companies’ principal source
of knowledge and support; they are in a
position not just to help the needy, but to
encourage the worthy.
To have a complete picture of the different
entrepreneurial ecosystems around Europe and
a better understanding of the different initiatives
and best practices, Telefónica set out to map
accelerators, incubators and company builders in
leading European countries,
1
creating a first-of-
its-kind portrait of the relative density and scope
of accelerators and incubators in 10 key European
economies.
2
By mapping the different entrepreneurial
ecosystems we can understand the different stages
and needs of each ecosystem, gain first-hand
insights from local players through interviews, site
visits and conference calls and learn how to scale
up existing programmes to mobilise European talent
for startups. The results are fascinating (See the key
findings on page 2 and the map on page 4 for an
overview).
3
Page 1
The Accelerator
and Incubator
Ecosystem in
Europe
Principal authors:
Eduardo Salido, Marc Sabás and Pedro Freixas
Project team leaders:
Frédéric Michel and Dr. Javier Santiso
This research, conducted independently, forms part of a pledge to the Startup Europe Initiative of the European
Commission. For more information, visithttp://ec.europa.eu/digital-agenda/en/startup-europe.
The opinions expressed in this research paper are those of the principal authors and project team leaders alone
and do not necessarily reflect the views of Telefónica, the European Commission or any of their associates.
Page 2
Key Findings
1
Europe has a healthy and thriving early stage
startup scene.
2
Europe and the United States have a
comparable number of startup programmes per
capita. We found 260 startup programmes in
the 10 countries surveyed, compared to roughly
200 in the US.
4
Given the relative similarity in
population density between the two economic
areas (the US has a population of 316 million,
and the 10 countries surveyed here have roughly
361 million people). This means that, on a per
capita basis, Europe has roughly as many and
perhaps even more accelerators than the US.
3
The number of European accelerators and
incubators has increased dramatically since the
start of the financial crisis. Between 2007 and
2013, the number has risen nearly 400%.
4
The accelerator and incubator landscape in
Europe is diverse, with different geographical
models running on different principles. In the
United Kingdom and France, most accelerators
and incubators are concentrated around the
national capital while in other countries (i.e. Spain
and Sweden), the business startup programmes
tend to be spread more evenly throughout
the territory.
5
Information or benchmarks of the different
programmes is not easily available.
6
European accelerator programmes vary widely
in terms of the amount of equity they ask in
return for funding or for accepting a company
into their mentoring programme. The equity cost
to attend accelerator programmes also varies
greatly across and within countries.
7
Good, sound policy initiatives at the European
level could do much to boost the potential of
European entrepreneurs.
Page 3
Among the key policy recommendations which emerge from the study we identified the following
‘policy decalogue’:
1
When it comes to pan-European
entrepreneurship policies, the one-size fits-
all model does not fit. Policymakers must
implement different policies for centralised and
decentralised ecosystems.
2
Mind the funding gaps: Different ecosystems
have different needs – and different gaps
– when it comes to funding. Policymakers in
Czech Republic, Italy, Slovakia and Spain should
increase the amount of early seed stage funding
available to entrepreneurs. At the same time, all
countries surveyed should increase the amount
of so-called “Series A” and “Series B” funding
available to young companies.
5
3
Policymakers should boost sector-specialised
programmes by ensuring that they receive
at least 50% of available European funding
resources. An effort should be made to create
a balance between specialised and generalist
programmes of roughly 50-50.
4
European leaders should take decisive steps
to make country borders meaningless for
entrepreneurs. The full single market – 28
countries, 507 million people, €12 trillion of
annual gross domestic product – should be as
accessible for every startup as their home-
country market is.
5
Simplify and unite: Policymakers should reduce
bureaucracy and facilitate startup rollouts
across Europe.
6
Policymakers should increase transparency by
making comparable data in key areas more
widely available.
7
Policymakers should create incentives to
encourage competition and innovation among
euro-entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs should be
the new “rockstars.”
8
Close the loop: Policymakers should facilitate
connections between university hubs, research
institutes and business schools. They should
allocate around 50% of the beneficiaries of pan-
European funding in these types of institutions.
9
Policy should activate technical talent to get
involved in entrepreneurial ventures. One way
of doing so would be to create an “Erasmus”
programme for programmers, designers and
engineers with rotations across different
European countries, using startup programmes
as coordinating agents.
10
Measure all aspects of the socio-economic
impact that startups are causing to provide
greater transparency and to increase awareness
of the vital role startups play in creating and
sustaining prosperity.
Page 4
France
35
Germany
31
Sweden
22
Italy
23
Czech
Republic
11
9
Slovakia
Spain
38
UK
50
Ireland
20
Netherlands
21
Main European Hubs
by Number of Startup
Programmes
Source: Telefónica Global Affairs and New Ventures, 2013
We analysed the top seven countries by GDP in Europe (France, Germany, Italy,
the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom) and we added three
other interesting cases: Czech Republic and Slovakia, two examples of a nascent
entrepreneurial ecosystem, and Ireland, a small tight-knit community now living
a second wave of entrepreneurs after the late 90s.
Please note there are many other entrepreneurial initiatives and lively communities
in other European countries which have not been included in the scope of this paper.
Additionally, there are other aspects of entrepreneurial activity which have not
been covered due to our focus on startup programmes. A broader approach to
entrepreneurial ecosystems can be found at the Startup Ecosystem Report 2012,
Part One.
6
Page 4
Page 5
Entrepreneurship Ecosystems in Europe:
Alive and Kicking
Across the continent, Europe boasts a dynamic and healthy landscape of accelerator and incubator
initiatives. In this survey of 10 representative European economies, we identified 260 startup
programmes; in the US, there are approximately 200.
7
Therefore, from a quantitative standpoint, both
markets are comparable in terms of the number of programmes.
Interestingly, we found that most of these
programmes were launched after the financial crisis
struck in late 2008. The compound annual growth
rate for accelerators in Europe more than doubled
in the last 12 years to 29% post crisis, up from 14%
pre-crisis, and increased by nearly 400% since
the start of the crisis.
8
This reflects an impressive
counter-cyclical capacity of startup initiatives across
the continent.
Chart 1 Accumulated number of incubators and accelerators in the 10 survey countries
since 2001
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
'01-'07 - 14% CAGR
'07-'13 - 29% CAGR
Source: Telefónica Global Affairs and New Ventures, 2013
Table 1 Top seven European Union countries ranked by total GDP (2011)
Concept Unit Germany France
United
Kingdom
Italy Spain
Nether-
lands
Sweden
Total GDP Bn USD 3,400 2,608 2,440 2,014 1,352 773 526
GDP per Capita EUR / inhabitant 30,100 27,600 30,400 22,800 20,300 32,700 35,500
Population million people 81.84 65.33 63.26 60.82 46.20 16.73 9.48
Unemployment Rate Total (%) 5.5 10.3 7.9 10.7 25 5.3 8
Young Unemployment < 25 yrs (%) 8.1 24.6 21 35.3 53.2 9.5 23.7
Total Entrepreneurial Activity % adult population 5 5 9 4 6 10 6
Nascent Entrep. Activity % ad. Pop,