Ghent

TLDR

Belgium's densest tech ecosystem, home to multiple unicorns and the Wintercircus startup campus.

Overview

Ghent has established itself as Belgium's most active tech city, particularly in B2B SaaS, AI, and scale-ups. The city hosts multiple unicorns including TechWolf and Deliverect, and the Wintercircus campus concentrates over 40 startups in a single location.

UGent feeds strong engineering and computer science talent into the local ecosystem. Key connectors include Dorien Van Steenberge at Wintercircus and Jonas Dhaenens of In The Pocket.

The city's compact size and strong local community create a high-density network effect that rivals cities many times its size.

A notable pattern in the Ghent ecosystem is what observers call the "Ghent SaaS mafia": successful founders reinvesting into the next generation. The clearest expression runs from Showpad to Entourage (the fund founded by Showpad's ex-CEO Pieterjan Bouten) to portfolio companies Aikido Security, Henchman, and Eagl. Silverfin, Powernaut, and AgomAb Therapeutics add further depth across Fintech, energy, and biotech.