New Dutch government wants to create a National Agency for Disruptive Innovation

The new Netherlands' government wants to create a National Agency for Disruptive Innovation (NADI), based on the model of the American DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency), it announced in its presentation of the "2026-2030 Coalition Agreement: Getting Started" on 30/01/2026.

The document also said that the government was working towards the 3% EU target for R&D investments (the Netherlands invested 2.3% in R&D in 2023): "The majority of this must come from the business community, but the government can also stimulate the sector with public investment. In addition, the government must create the right conditions and act more often as a ‘launching customer’ for innovative technologies," the parties said.

"We will make use of the scope offered by European legislation for 'regulatory sandboxes' (a tool allowing businesses to explore and experiment with new and innovative products, services or businesses under a regulator's supervision) and increase the scope for experimentation for young technology companies. Scientific knowledge must be converted more into economic value,…