Welcoming 2026 at Rotterdam Square’s New Year Reception

On Thursday, January 22, we celebrated the start of 2026 at the Rotterdam Square New Year’s Reception at Erasmus MC. Thank you to everyone who joined us! It was wonderful to see the network come together again and start the year with new connections and energy.

Robert Simons opened the evening by highlighting Rotterdam’s focus on Health and Tech as a priority sector alongside the harbour, and emphasized the importance of building a strong, connected ecosystem. He also welcomed five newly landed companies to Rotterdam: New Nörm, UGenome AI, Coronet Ventures, United Imaging, and The Organoid Company.

A special thank you to Diana Ognesian (New Nörm), Jayden Lee (UGenome AI), and Koen van Breugel (Coronet Ventures) for joining the stage and sharing their journeys. We’re thrilled to have you as part of our ecosystem and look forward to supporting your growth. Together, we can drive real impact in healthcare. Welcome to Rotterdam!

Dirk Schraven shared insights into the future of the Erasmus MC campus, including the new incubator opening in 2027, and reflected on the impact Rotterdam Square has had on the city’s ecosystem over the years.

Our Managing Director, Ellen Smit, looked back on key achievements from 2025, including collaborations with Convergence and the YES!Delft validation and accelerator programme, and offered a brief preview of what’s ahead in 2026. She closed by thanking all our partners for a year of strong collaboration and expressed excitement for the year ahead.

Exciting developments are coming up, and we can’t wait to continue building a thriving healthcare ecosystem together!

Would you like to join one of our upcoming events and connect with the Rotterdam Life Sciences & Health network? Take a look at our events page for more information or sign up for our mailing list to stay up-to-date.