On the morning of the opening of Startup Fest Europe, 10 of the most promising disruptive and innovative companies run by budding Dutch or international entrepreneurs will pitch their plans to a panel of global Dragons, CEOs and special guests. Power breakfast will be served with the most amazing view of Amsterdam!

1. AMSTERDEN 2016, May 24, 07:00-10:00
www.AMSTERDEN.amsterdam
Get involved or miss out: AMSTERDEN 2016 in
Amsterdam on May 24!
Imagine being in the historic heart of the Innovation Capital of Europe,
Amsterdam. Participating in an exclusive new international "Dragons' Den" together with a
select group of the world's leading stage agnostic VCs, business angels, corporate CEOs and
HNWIs. And then as a Dragon, to get the opportunity to choose to collaborate with or invest
in one or several of the most promising disruptive, innovative and scalable companies in
the world, run by Dutch or international high-impact entrepreneurs. While having a power
breakfast with your peers with one of the most stunning views of the Venice of the
North, not far from the building where the first multinational corporation (VOC) and stock
exchange were born in the 17th Century.
Enter: AMSTERDEN 2016!
When and where?
AMSTERDEN 2016 will take place in the most modern, high-tech location in Amsterdam on
Tuesday morning, May 24 (07:00am-10:00am), precisely on the opening day (witch starts at
11.00am) of Startup Fest Europe, the biggest start-up festival on the planet. AMSTERDEN is
an independently organised, high-profile, invitation-only event.
Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands, Prince of Orange-Nassau, the third son of Princess
Beatrix and Prince Claus, is chair of Startup Fest Europe. He was former Head of Cabinet
of Neelie Kroes, former European Commission Vice-President and Digital Agenda
Commissioner and currently Special Envoy for Start-ups and Scale-ups for The Netherlands.
On the opening Tuesday, Tim Cook (CEO, Apple), Travis Kalanick (co-founder and CEO,
Uber), Kevin Hale (Managing Partner, Y Combinator), Pieter van der Does (co-founder /
President & CEO, Adyen), Andrus Ansip (European Commission Vice-President for the Digital
Single Market and former PM of Estonia), Nathan Blecharczyk (co-founder and CTO,
Airbnb), Gillian Tans (President and COO, Booking.com), Mattias Ljungman (co-founder and
Partner, Investmens, Atomico), Mark Rutte (Prime Minister of the Netherlands) as well as
500+ investors, start-up entrepreneurs and VIPs from all over the world will gather in
Amsterdam.
Why?
Right now, Amsterdam is the hottest place to be for start-ups, scale-ups and grown-ups
alike, but also for leading VCs, angels, pioneering innovators and multinational corporations
from around the world.
Amsterdam is the European Capital of Innovation 2016 [watch this video]

2. AMSTERDEN 2016, May 24, 07:00-10:00
www.AMSTERDEN.amsterdam
Amsterdam was chosen by a panel of independent experts in a close competition with eight
more finalists, including the runners-up Turin and Paris. The Dutch capital has received the
award in recognition of its approach to innovation related to four basic areas of urban
life: governance, economics, social inclusion and quality of life.
Amsterdam is also in the spotlight in the EU, since The Netherlands holds the Presidency of
the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2016. All activities, including
exhibitions, a creative campus and on-stage events, are taking place in Amsterdam. The
majority of Dutch EU Presidency meetings are taking place at the Scheepvaartmuseum and
the historical naval dockyard, the Marine Etablissement.
The Netherlands is determined to become Europe's largest and most successful start-up
ecosystem. To give this drive an extra boost, the government has initiated
the StartupDelta initiative: a dedicated team spearheaded by Special Envoy Neelie Kroes
with excellent connections in enterprise, government, research and all aspects of the start-
up community.
In addition, the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs is providing the legal framework to
enable businesses to start and grow quickly: funding, appropriate regulation, and a new
entry scheme for ambitious start-ups from outside Europe.
Furthermore, as of last year, a new regulation makes it possible for ambitious entrepreneurs
to apply for a temporary residence permit for the Netherlands. The so-called residence
permit 'scheme for start-ups' affords ambitious entrepreneurs one year to launch an
innovative business. A prerequisite is that this start-up must be guided by an experienced
mentor (facilitator) that is based in The Netherlands. Under this scheme, new international
start-ups launching in The Netherlands will be offered the necessary support to develop into
a mature enterprise.
In March 2016, the European Digital Forum formally launched “The 2016 Startup Nation
Scoreboard: How European Union Countries are Improving Policy Frameworks and
Developing Powerful Ecosystems for Entrepreneurs". According to this report, which was
launched at CeBIT 2016, The Netherlands ranks No.1 with a Startup Manifesto-based
adoption rate of 85%. It excels in institutional framework (No. 1 at 100%), thought
leadership (No. 1 at 100%) and access to talent (No. 1 at 69%). Its weakest performance is
on better-access-to-capital-based measures, where it scores No. 8 (with a completion rate
of 80%).
The Netherlands is a small, densely-populated country with a relatively large
entrepreneurial impact. It all happens in 10+ leading innovation hubs that are 90 minutes
apart – giving entrepreneurs access to top talent, technology and ecosystems to help them
grow their business.

3. AMSTERDEN 2016, May 24, 07:00-10:00
www.AMSTERDEN.amsterdam
Furthermore, The Netherlands is a fast-changing, dynamic economy that presents
opportunities to all entrepreneurs, innovators and great minds who think on an
international scale. Scale-ups, such as Booking.com and Adyen, are changing the way we
travel and pay. The Netherlands has a unique proposition as a “testbed" and “launch pad"
for start-ups and scale-ups. Dutch consumers are also very open to change and tech savvy.
International companies in The Netherlands include the European headquarters
for Tesla, Uber, Nike, Netflix and many others. Besides, Amsterdam's central location is an
excellent connection to the 350+ million potential customers in the European marketplace.
What is the focus of AMSTERDEN 2016?
There are a few gems in The Netherlands that are seeking capital and for this reason, we are
giving the unique opportunity to 10 high-impact entrepreneurs heading 10 of the most
promising and innovative ventures that have...
1. exceptional founders / management team;
2. substantial potential for growth;
3. a disruptive, globally scalable product or service and business model;
4. their headquartersin The Netherlands (preferaby) or an EU member state;
5. the need to attract an investment of between €100,000 and €2.5 million;
...to pitch for investment at AMSTERDEN 2016 in front of a top-notch, highly-experienced
jury of leading VCs, investment bankers, angel investors and successful serial entrepreneurs.
AMSTERDEN 2016 is especially interested in:
 FinTech
 Logistical Innovation and Mobility
 Digital Health
 Sustainable Innovation, including Biobased & Circular Economy, Water & (Smart) Energy
Transition
Intertwined in the above focus areas are elements of:
 Safety & Supervision
 Internet of Things
 Big Data
Stage: Agnostic.
Who are invited to attend?
We are inviting the world's leading stage agnostic VCs, angel investors and HNWIs who are
keen on investing in the hottest and most promising ventures in The Netherlands. We are
also inviting the venture capital and private equity arms of (predominantly Dutch)
multinationals as wel as successful Dutch and international entrepreneurs who are providing

4. AMSTERDEN 2016, May 24, 07:00-10:00
www.AMSTERDEN.amsterdam
a stable source of capital, experience and expertise to the next generation of innovators
and forward-thinking pioneers.
Want to be on the Guest List?
Do you wish to be invited to attend AMSTERDEN 2016 as a Dragon, Investor, CEO, Partner or
Entrepreneur? Please get in touch with PM Heilmann, Organiser / Producer of AMSTERDEN,
at info@AMSTERDEN.amsterdam. Or visit www.amsterden.amsterdam.