The National Digital Research Centre (NDRC) has been a cornerstone of Ireland’s start-up ecosystem, nurturing early-stage digital ventures and propelling them toward success. Established in 2007, the NDRC was a government initiative aimed at investing in digital enterprises and start-ups, providing them with the necessary support to thrive, over the last 20 years in Ireland we have been beholden to Google, Apple and big American MNC’s while there has been an attempt to grow native digital companies. It played a key role in fostering innovation and entrepreneurship in Ireland, with a significant impact on the growth of numerous promising companies. But recently, the NDRC has announced it will cease operations next year, marking the end of an era. Let’s take a closer look at what the NDRC accomplished, why its closure is significant, and what comes next.
What is the NDRC?
The NDRC operated as a venture accelerator, providing essential support, mentorship, and funding for early-stage start-ups in Ireland. I’m probably biased as in the last year my other baby outside of Goosed aka StatrDraft (gwan be legends and join the waiting list, but more on that another day) has been involved the Start-up Sprint, Pre-Accelerator and have been waiting for entry their full Accelerator to create a product and eventually tech based jobs in Ireland. The idea was simple but powerful: to help entrepreneurs turn great ideas into scalable businesses, have a listen to the Goosed Podcast where I caught up with Republic of Work Programme Manager Andy McManagan who might be one of the nicest guys in the industry. The NDRC provided investment and mentoring through its acceleration programmes, which were designed to give start-ups the best possible chance of success. The centres focused on nurturing digital enterprises, specifically those with the potential to make a global impact.
Their mission is straightforward (or soon to be, was I guess)—to help start-ups succeed at every point of their journey. The NDRC’s accelerator programs offered hands-on coaching, financial support, and a founder-first approach delivered by experienced mentors who had successfully built and scaled international companies themselves. It wasn’t just about the money; it was about providing the know-how, the connections, and the community to get start-ups off the ground and set them on a path to success. Basically if you had a good idea for a great tech based business, these are the guys you wanted to talk to first.
Impact and Achievements
Over the years, the NDRC played a pivotal role in the growth of Ireland’s digital ecosystem. The organisation helped launch and nurture some of the country’s most promising start-ups, several of which have gone on to achieve significant success. Notable alumni include Nuritas, a biotech company using AI to unlock nutritional discoveries; Soundwave, an innovative music discovery app later acquired by Spotify; Boxever, a data-driven customer experience platform acquired by Sitecore; and Silvercloud Health, a digital mental health platform making waves in the global market.
Through its programs, the NDRC provided funding, guidance, and connections to a variety of start-up’s. The impact was tangible: companies that went through the NDRC created hundreds of jobs and brought substantial investment into the Irish economy. In just the last three years of its operations, companies linked to the NDRC created over 650 jobs, demonstrating the vital role it played in fostering new business growth and innovation.
Stephen Dooley the Founder of Roamr an Irish travel accommodation platform is calling for a reversal of this decision and is being backed by the Irish Start-up community had this to say:
We were shocked and disappointed to hear of the government’s decision to cease funding for the NDRC. Roamr has recently closed a round of funding with about 50% of US investors and 50% Irish investors. Almost every Irish investor we spoke to was in some way affiliated with or networked within Dogpatch Labs and the NDRC programmes.
Stephen goes on to say “The ecosystem that is being built by the NDRC hubs has quickly formed the epicentre of the Irish start up community. The fact that it is built by founders for founders means the quality of mentors and operators affiliatied with the programmes is second to none. These are people who have built business worth hundreds of millions and the access to that paves the way for the next founders to do the same, even something like the NDRC safe note was a huge asset for our fundraising because it created trust in the terms that we put in front of investors knowing it was put together by the NDRC.”
The NDRC’s model was also influential in helping Irish start-ups gain traction internationally. By focusing on the digital space, the NDRC positioned Ireland as a hub for technology and innovation, attracting talent and investment from around the world. It became a vital stepping stone for young companies looking to scale their operations and break into global markets.
The volume of startups across Ireland who are disappointed in the news continues to grow and considering there is a very important general election on the horizon it seems poor timing at the very least to be pulling the rug out from the incubator infrastructure.
“I’m really disappointed in the decision to end the funding for NDRC. As a founder who has gone through the NDRC pre-accelerator, I’m working on a deep tech product and the help and support I have received in the NDRC has been exceptional.” – Tania abstrakta co founder
Transition and Ceasing of Operations
In late 2020, the NDRC underwent a significant transition. The original NDRC based out of the Digital Hub in Dublin was wound down, and its operations were transformed into a new model designed to decentralize start-up support across Ireland. The government awarded a €17 million contract to Dogpatch Labs and its regional partners to take over the mantle and expand support to entrepreneurs in every corner of the country. This new model aimed to create a more inclusive and regionally balanced approach to nurturing start-ups.
The “new NDRC” became a consortium that includes innovation hubs across Ireland—Dogpatch Labs in Dublin, along with RDI Hub in Kerry, Portershed in Galway, and Republic of Work in Cork. This collaborative approach was designed to make entrepreneurial resources and support more accessible to founders across Ireland, not just those based in the capital. The goal was to democratize access to the opportunities provided by start-up accelerators, ensuring that promising businesses in rural areas have the same opportunities as those in Dublin.
In a statement on its website, the NDRC confirmed that it will cease operations this month.
It is with this legacy of achievement that we announce the NDRC will cease operations
The NDRC said that the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications after consultations with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and Enterprise Ireland decided that the startup land in the country has changed since the NDRC began and and has decided not to procure a new service contract for NDRC beyond its current contract expiration in November 2025.
As the NDRC enters its final operating year, we remain committed to maintaining our programmes,” the statement added. “Operations will continue as usual until November 2025, and we have plans in place to manage and support ongoing investments.”
A report from earlier this year showed that companies that the NDRC worked with created 650 jobs in the previous three years and that start-ups that had participated in its programmes had raised more than €56m in the same period. Seems kind of odd to me that something that looks to be working so well would be closed up and an announcement would be so forthcoming this close to a general election.
What Happens Next?
While the original NDRC as we knew it will soon cease operations, its spirit and mission we hope will live on through the network of innovation hubs and the amazing people behind them.
For more than two decades, the National Digital Research Centre (NDRC) has contributed to the development of the Irish start-up ecosystem by advancing early-stage digital enterprises and aiding portfolio companies in raising +€500 million, of which +€200 million was secured in the last four years alone. It is with this legacy of achievement that they announced the NDRC will cease operations in November 2025.
Beyond this statement directly from the NDRC website, there is little knowledge or understanding as to what happens next, this writer personally has ideas –
- Spread the resources and opportunities that were once concentrated in Dublin to a broader audience, guess what government people outside the pale have ideas too, the NDRC did great work spreading the innovation bug but government don’t seem to want to hear it
- Dogpatch Labs and the other hubs, which have a strong track record of supporting start-ups, with an emphasis on fostering a thriving tech ecosystem in Ireland—to be a catalyst for start-ups, to drive innovation, and to support the growth of Ireland’s digital economy—but with a structure that is more in tune with the needs of today’s entrepreneurs
- Private or semi private groups get involved with the wider Dogpatch network to keep the accelerators of Irish companies alive, I am all ears
Because honestly its a surprise in a era where we have a cash rich government especially since the Apple Ruling, and a focus on developing native Irish tech companies, that we would pull such programs especially when all reports are saying to invest more in the Irish startup ecosystem, but then again why should we be overly surprised there right.
The NDRC played an essential role in shaping Ireland’s digital start-up landscape, providing the foundation that many of today’s most successful Irish tech companies were built upon. Its closure marks the end of an era, the hope is something will happen not only to fill the gap left by the original NDRC but expand upon it, creating an even more robust and inclusive environment for Ireland’s next generation of start-ups.
