European Space Agency to Open New Business Incubation Centre in Romania
Published on May 22, 2019
- The European Space Agency to open new Business Incubation Centre.
- The location will open by the end of the year in Romania.
The European Space Agency is looking to open a new Business Incubator Center in Romania, adding another country to its list. The center might open by the end of the year.
During the Bucharest Tech Week, TechNadu had a talk with Frank M. Salzgeber, ESA's Head of Innovation and Ventures Office, who handles setting up Business Incubation Centers. He said that he is looking forward to finding out what new ideas can be borne in Romania and which start-ups they will be funding for the next few years.
Over the years, Salzgeber's team has supported over 720 start-ups, investing over 45 million Euros in seed money. Currently, there are incubators in over 60 cities and 17 European countries, where start-ups are born across the year. The ESA offers financial and technical support for two years, but also beyond that, until the companies are ready to stand on their own two feet.
"After these two years, it's like your kids or your nephews; you're not banned from the family. We continue to support them with projects, with networks, with events, until they are self-standing," Salzgeber said, adding that hardware technology can take seven or eight years to reach this level, so they need help along the way.
The fact that the ESA is expanding into Romania is great news as many start-ups that either handle data processing of any kind or some hardware that will come in handy in space will get to enjoy hefty funding from the Agency. Salzgeber added that he is currently working alongside the Romanian Space Agency to achieve this and that he hopes the incubator will be set up by the end of the year.
We are preparing an interview with Frank M. Sazgeber, so stay tuned to read our conversation in full in the coming days.
What do you think about the investments the ESA is making into start-ups? Let us know in the comments section below and please share the article so others find it too. Follow TechNadu on Facebook and Twitter for more tech news, interviews, guides, and reviews.
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