Belgian tech companies have raised €1.43 billion in investments since the start of the year, according to a statement released by industry federation Agoria on Thursday.
Nearly half of this record amount, which is almost double last year’s total, was secured by companies heavily focused on artificial intelligence. This trend is popular among new businesses, with 60% of startups founded this year focusing on AI at their core.
Overall, the energy and clean tech sectors attracted the highest investments, amounting to €387 million. Following closely is the hospitality tech sector. In this category, Ghent-based hotel software scale-up Lighthouse dominated by raising the entire €350 million invested in 2024.
Agoria noted that Ghent is now the “undisputed Belgian tech capital of 2024,” with €520 million in investments. On a broader scale, Flanders outperformed its neighbours in tech investments, securing €1.06 billion compared to €190 million in Wallonia and €150 million in Brussels.
Last year, the technology sector injected €738 million to boost its activities. This was a dip after consistent growth since 2013, which saw €97 million in investments, peaking in 2022 with €1.41 billion. The current year has seen fewer investment deals – 125 compared to 155 last year – but with larger sums per deal.
