New innovation centre in Boston to strengthen links with Harvard and MIT

• Read the life science strategy at the Danish Ministry of Industry, Business and Financial Affairs (In Danish) [inactive link]

Danish researchers and companies are among the best in the world for life science research. And it is a position we wish to maintain and improve even more. 

The Government will therefore establish an innovation centre in Boston - close to elite universities like Harvard and MIT, which house some of the world’s greatest research environments.

Minister for Higher Education and Science Søren Pind wants to make it easier for Danish researchers and SMEs to contact partners from the world’s leading research environments:

- Our research is elevated and good ideas become great ones, when we collaborate with the best in the world. An innovation centre in Boston will reduce the distance between Denmark and the USA so that we can create the right kind of contacts and bring relevant knowledge and new technology home to Denmark, says Minister for Higher Education and Science Søren Pind.

- In addition to a strong research environment, Boston also has a large medical and pharmaceutical industry and is an attractive environment for entrepreneurs. The centre in Boston will give ambitious Danish start-ups and growth companies valuable access to partners and financing, which can help them upscale and pave the way for their further international growth. So that they can be the Danish export success stories of tomorrow, says Minister for Foreign Affairs Anders Samuelsen.

The new innovation centre is an initiative in the Government’s growth plan for life science, which was launched on March 2nd.

The Danish innovation centres

With the new innovation centre in Boston, Denmark will now have eight innovation centres - building bridges between Danish research, higher education programmes, companies and some of the world’s leading innovation and growth environments.

The current innovation centres are in Silicon Valley, Shanghai, Munich, São Paulo, Seoul, New Delhi and Tel Aviv. The centres are operated in cooperation between the Ministry of Higher Education and Science and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The centres help introduce Danish education and research institutions, as well as companies, to the latest local knowledge, technology, relevant networks, collaborative partners and financing. 

Meanwhile, the innovation centres also work to attract new knowledge, research financing, talent and investment to Denmark.

Financing

The growth plan for life science is a result of the political agreement on business and entrepreneurial initiatives between the Government, Dansk Folkeparti (the Danish People’s Party) and Radikale Venstre (the Social Liberals) of 12 November 2017. The Minister for Industry, Business and Financial Affairs will follow up with the parties to the political agreement with regard to the detailed allocation of DKK 30 million annually. According to the agreement, this funding will be earmarked for initiatives in the growth plan.

For further information please contact:

Ministry of Higher Education and Science: Media enquiries, tel: +45 7231 8181
Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Kasper Thams Olsen, tel: +45 6197 9031