Venture Challenge Fall and Winter 2025

A ‘must-do’ opportunity for starting life sciences entrepreneurs and the ideal way to receive coaching and advice on essential elements of setting up a business. In two 3-day workshops and one-on-one coaching sessions, the coaches and the other teams will challenge you to focus and turn your research into a solid business case. At the end of the Venture Challenge, the team with the best venture plan and pitch will be awarded € 25,000. During the Dutch Life Sciences conference, the teams get the opportunity to pitch during the plenary programme and the winner will be announced!

The Fall and Winter 2025 call for applications is open! The deadline is on 1 July 2025. Next to the regular Venture Challenge, this year we'll have a first ever MedTech only edition! Apply via NWO.

In 2008 an idea to create a programme to support life sciences researchers with entrepreneurial aspirations came true with the start of LifeSciences@Work. The Venture Challenge is part of the LS@W programme and has proven to be the most successful startup programme in Drug Development, Diagnostics and Medical Devices in the Netherlands. The internationally recognised program has won the European Enterprise Promotion Award in 2022 and was listed in the Financial Times: Europe’s Leading Start-up Hubs 2024.

The Venture Challenge is an instrument of the Dutch Ministery of Economic Affairs. It is organised as a collaboration between NWO and Health~Holland. The program is further supported by private sponsors such as Loyens & Loeff and Pivot Park. More information on the Venture Challenge and other LifeSciences@work activities can be found on www.lifesciencesatwork.nl.