Currently 6 active tech and infrastructure grants, fellowships and residencies open to applicants in the Netherlands. Hand-curated and updated weekly. Almost every entry is funded; a few notable unpaid open calls and festival submissions are included as clearly flagged exceptions. Browse the list below, or use the interactive desk for filtering and shortlisting.
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One residency for an individual practitioner, a duo or a studio working at the intersection of sound and space, exploring architecture through spatial audio. THE PREMISE: architecture is traditionally conceived through form, structure, material and light, with sound treated as something to be controlled or optimised afterwards. This residency asks what happens if architecture begins with sound, shifting the question from how a space should sound to how sound can generate space. Spatial audio, virtual acoustics and immersive media now allow prototyping of responsive environments, impossible architectures and sonic spaces beyond physical constraints. RESEARCH QUESTIONS include how sound can become a first principle in architectural and spatial design, how the acoustic properties of space inform the creation and perception of spatial sound, and how artistic research can shape the future tools, interfaces and methods of spatial sound creation. NOT JUST ARTWORKS: they explicitly say they want new methods, insights and creative infrastructures too. Outcomes may include installations, spatial audio compositions, performances, audiovisual works, software prototypes, reusable methodologies or modular interfaces. Residents may collaborate with a 4DSOUND software developer to prototype new tools, and practitioners who already build their own software, hardware or creative technologies are encouraged to advance those as part of the residency. WHO: architects are the named invitees, with scenographers, spatial designers, installation artists, sound artists, composers and creative technologists also encouraged. Creative coding experience is welcome but not required. Lead researcher is Poul Holleman, co-founder and director of 4DSOUND. HARD ELIGIBILITY GATE: applicants must be based in the Netherlands AND registered as an artist with the Dutch Chamber of Commerce (KvK). This is not negotiable and rules out non-NL applicants. Futures of Listening is a Netherlands-based platform for spatial sound, immersive experience, performance and installation art, founded by FIBER Festival, 4DSOUND, Robin Koek and Art of Sound at the Royal Conservatoire The Hague, supported by CIIIC and Stimuleringsfonds.
The MIT R&D Collaboration Projects scheme (MIT R&D-samenwerkingsprojecten, part of MKB Innovatiestimulering Topsectoren) funds joint R&D projects by Dutch SMEs within the national Top Sectors and Mission-driven Innovation policy. The grant covers 35 percent of eligible costs: small projects of EUR 50,000-200,000 and large projects of EUR 200,000-350,000 (with per-participant ranges of EUR 25,000-100,000 for small and EUR 25,000-175,000 for large). Eligible applicants are consortia of at least two collaborating SMEs, with no single participant carrying more than 70 percent of costs. The national RVO round runs 9 June to 15 September 2026 (closes 17:00) and is a ranked tender, not first-come-first-served; some provinces run separate regional MIT windows. No application fee. Apply via RVO.
A one-off 2026 call letting Dutch cultural institutions reuse and adapt digital technology that other institutions have already built and published in the open DigitALL Toolkit, for example translation software shared between theatres or a streaming platform adapted for a new venue. Grants run up to EUR 30,000 and cover technical modification, integration, production and deployment costs. Eligible applicants are museums, theatres, music venues, festivals, film theatres and professional performing arts producers. Applications are submitted online and assessed in order of receipt rather than comparatively, with a decision within ten weeks. The deadline was extended from 31 May 2026 to 1 November 2026 after high demand. IMPORTANT RESTRICTION: this route cannot be used to further develop your own pilot internally; it exists specifically to spread another institution's working technology across the sector. For developing something new, use the DigitALL pilot contribution instead.
Cultuurloket DigitALL funds the digital innovation of the Dutch cultural sector and is the strongest dedicated digital-culture route currently open to Dutch cultural organisations. It is the successor to the discontinued Kickstart Cultuurfonds, backed by the VandenEnde Foundation, VSBfonds, Ammodo, Het Cultuurfonds and others. The pilot contribution of up to EUR 75,000 supports developing and running a first pilot, prototype or live version of a digital tool, which covers a wide range of creative-technology work embedded in festivals, exhibitions and public programmes. Eligible applicants are theatres, music venues, film theatres, museums, festivals and professional performing arts producers, with collaborations between institutions given priority. The pilot must be tested with the intended public audience, not only with experts, and funding cannot be used exclusively for hardware acquisition. Applications go through an online portal with no deadline and are handled in order of receipt. TIMING: a decision follows within ten weeks of submission, so plan roughly three months of lead time between applying and project start. Training and knowledge development through partner organisations is only covered when included in the submitted budget, so build it in from the outset.
The WBSO (Wet Bevordering Speur- en Ontwikkelingswerk) is the Dutch R&D tax credit administered by RVO. It reduces payroll/wage tax for companies with R&D staff and provides an income-tax deduction for self-employed people doing R&D; it is a tax credit, not a cash grant. For 2026 the benefit is 36 percent of the first EUR 380,000 of R&D wage and other costs (50 percent for qualifying startups) and 16 percent above that; self-employed receive a fixed deduction (and need at least 500 R&D hours per year). Eligible applicants are Dutch companies and self-employed people paying payroll or income tax who carry out qualifying R&D in the EU. Applications are made in advance via Mijn RVO and cannot be retroactive; for coverage of the final three months of a year the deadline is 30 September. Time-keeping and project administration are required. No application fee.
SIDN fonds (the foundation behind the .nl domain registry) invests in daring projects with societal added value that contribute to a strong internet and strong internet users. The Pioneers track is continuously open and awards up to EUR 10,000 to develop an innovative idea into a demo, pilot or experimental design; it is open to both individuals and legal entities. Larger projects are funded through theme calls issued once or twice a year (legal entities only). Projects must show innovation and public value and share their results openly; plain website or app building and purely B2B proposals are excluded. No application fee.