The Gerard & Anton Awards are for startups that demonstrate more than a good idea, an impressive demo or a promising pitch deck. Since the first edition in 2014, the community has put entrepreneurs in the spotlight who tackle urgent problems and have the potential to make a global difference. This year (2026), we celebrate the twelfth cohort of winners. Together, there are now 120 startups striving to realize their big dreams. And, judging by their success rate, they are doing remarkably well. More than 90% of former winners are still active, an unprecedented percentage in startup land. Together, they have raised more than €4 billion in investment.

This high success rate is closely connected to the fact that the jury, chaired by Alderman Stijn Steenbakkers, is itself embedded in this region’s innovative ecosystem. It therefore sees more than pitch decks and press releases: it knows the founders and their teams inside out.

Jury Report Gerard & Anton Awards 2026

The 2026 cohort shows where Brainport is strong today. These startups are not building incremental improvements; they address fundamental bottlenecks: AI’s energy appetite, heat in chips, congestion in data centers, Europe’s dependence on foreign solar technology, pollution, noise, and a lack of real-time insight into industrial processes. They are companies that connect 

The 10 most promising startups in Brainport took home the coveted awards. Six of the 10 call High Tech Campus home. Also, two of the winners are HighTechXL alumni, the Netherlands’ only deep tech venture building program.

Congratulations for the 10 winners:

ATA Mute B.V., Astrape Networks , Avendar, CoolSem Technologies, Euclyd, Helia Biomonitoring, Luper Technologies, Photon Bridge, Perovion Technologies, Touchwaves

Congrats also to Golden Lightbulb Award winner Syntric Medical and student team Team EDEN.

Read the full IO+ article here. 

Source: Team IO+, High Tech Campus and Bert-Jan Woertman

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