The TECH.LAND consortium was officially awarded European funding today for the "Interactive Knowledge and Technology Spaces" project. During a meeting at the Münster District Government, the consortium received the grant from District President Andreas Bothe.Through this project, Dutch and German partners are jointly developing a digital platform that connects companies, knowledge institutions, and public organizations in the border region more effectively. The goal is to develop the regions of the Eastern Netherlands, Münsterland, and Emscher-Lippe into one of Europe’s most transparent and innovation-oriented economic and scientific regions.€1.5 million is available for the project, of which €1.18 million comes from the Europäischer Fonds für regionale Entwicklung (EFRE), &nbsp;the Just Transition Fund (JTF) and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW). In addition, the project partners themselves are contributing financially.<h2>Insight into opportunities for entrepreneurs</h2>Together, the Dutch-German border region represents an economy of over €230 billion, with approximately 480,000 companies and more than twenty universities and research institutions. Yet economic and scientific data on both sides of the border remains highly fragmented. Information is often difficult to access, hard to compare, and scattered across different systems and organizations.&nbsp;The TECH.LAND platform aims to change that. The project brings together data from the region and provides insight into<ul><li>which companies, knowledge institutions, and networks are active;</li><li>where opportunities for collaboration lie;</li><li>how markets are developing;</li><li>which innovations and supply chains are promising;</li><li>and what entrepreneurs need to succeed in cross-border business.&nbsp;</li></ul>This offers new opportunities, especially for SMEs. Thanks to smart data analysis and artificial intelligence, entrepreneurs will soon be able to find suitable partners more quickly for innovation, research, production, supply chains, and international collaboration.In addition, the platform helps partners such as Oost NL, Twente Board, knowledge institutions, and governments to provide more targeted support to entrepreneurs. By gaining better insight into regional strengths, needs, and market opportunities, programs, investments, and collaborations can be organized more effectively.The platform will serve as a digital “one-stop shop” for cross-border innovation and collaboration. Entrepreneurs will gain faster access to relevant knowledge, networks and technology partners in both the Netherlands and Germany. This will not only strengthen their innovation capacity, but also enhance their international competitive position.<h2>Smart matchmaking with AI</h2>The digital platform will soon offer multilingual and structured information about companies, research institutions, and public organizations in the border region. Artificial intelligence enables automated matchmaking based on the specific needs of entrepreneurs and organizations.The platform focuses on the following innovation clusters, among others:<ul><li>Battery and hydrogen technology</li><li>Circular economy</li><li>Advanced manufacturing &amp; robotics</li><li>Health &amp; medical technology&nbsp;</li></ul>“We are building on our region’s strong position in the fields of economy and science, particularly in future-oriented sectors such as energy storage, digitalization, and international cooperation. This platform aims to help our border region grow into one of the most transparent economic and scientific regions in Europe,” said Hans Brouwers, program manager of TECH.LAND.<h2>Dutch-German cooperation</h2>The project is led by the IHK Nord Westfalen and is being implemented by five Dutch and German partners:<ul><li>Twente Board (Netherlands)</li><li>Oost NL (Netherlands)</li><li>Center for Dutch Studies, University of Münster (Germany)</li><li>TAFH Münster / Münster University of Applied Sciences (Germany)&nbsp;</li></ul>The initiative is part of the Dutch-German TECH.LAND program, which focuses on strengthening innovation, cooperation, and economic development in the border region.&nbsp;

TECH.LAND receives European funding for smart digital platform connecting companies and knowledge institutions across the border