IO’s week: Steun van de pensioenfondsen

In onze zondagse nieuwsbrief blikken wij als redactie terug op de afgelopen zeven dagen. Dat doen we op initiatief van onze cartoonist Albert Jan Rasker. Hij kiest een onderwerp, maakt een tekening en wij nemen het vanaf daar van hem over.

Dutch pension funds are investing more and more in deep tech and the energy transition. What can we expect from this “breakthrough”? Albert Jan knows. No, seriously: Dutch pension funds seem to be taking on a new role as investors in innovative technologies. For this article, we asked three experts how this development is driving the growth of deep tech and the energy transition in the Netherlands. And why start-ups, this target group that was defined as too risky for so long, have nevertheless become interesting for pension funds. And oh yes, our 67-plus people don’t have to fear for their monthly pension payment just yet…

ASML

In addition, of course, it was ASML’s week, as the company took a big step toward local growth. After the central government gave the region billions in upfront funding, it was the company’s own turn. It did so with the announcement to create jobs for 20,000 people at the Brainport Industries Campus expansion site.

All these new activities will create new jobs in the supply chain, both inside and outside the region. Brainport Eindhoven is already considering a total of over 70,000 new jobs up to 2040. That will require some 100,000 new housing units. No wonder the region is excited (and fearful) about this.

What else caught our eye last week?

• Why the bicycle is a high-tech masterpiece
• Intellectual property is ‘not an afterthought or coincidence,’ but fundamental to innovation
• Charging stations are proliferating, but we need more clarity on prices
• Cancer therapy with smart ‘umbrellas’ spares healthy body tissue
• To meet climate goals, we need to consider controversial options
• How a physicist helps organize increasingly crowded skies
• Batteries are becoming increasingly important in the energy mix
• TNO develops ultrasonic patch for organ monitoring

And here, you can find all the other articles we produced this week. Have a lovely Sunday!