Inside Amsterdam's innovation district: where ideas get tested
For a behind-the-scenes look at how Amsterdam turns ideas into urban experiments, join AMS Institute for a two-hour walking tour of the city's only innovation district where outdoor experimentation is allowed — the day before KFF26 kicks off, in the square kilometre where startups, researchers, and policymakers share the same pavement.
Tuesday May 26 · 15:00–17:00 AMS Institute, Gebouw 027W, Kattenburgerstraat 5, 1018 JA Amsterdam
The Marineterrein in central Amsterdam is one of very few places in Europe where you can pilot autonomous boats on a public canal, test biodegradable construction materials in the open, run live biodiversity experiments on city ground, and have all of it walking distance from the policymakers who can scale what works. AMS Institute sits at the heart of it.
The afternoon opens with a 30-minute indoor session at AMS Institute, framing how the city collaborates with researchers, startups, and capital to move deep tech from research to pilot to deployment, plus a look at the entrepreneurship programmes that anchor it.
Then we step outside for a 60-minute walking tour with four stops across the Marineterrein: autonomous water mobility on the open canals, a smart circular recycling solution running in the wild, a live urban biodiversity experiment, and a pavilion showcasing circular construction materials and next-generation solar technology. Each stop is a real-world example of how deep tech moves from idea to operational pilot, and the partners, policy, and financing that make it possible.
The tour closes with a short reflection and informal networking — a chance to keep the conversation going with the founders and researchers running the experiments.
A grounded pre-festival anchor for anyone arriving early for Investor Day, and a working model of what "metamorphosis" looks like when a city decides to test it in public.
YOUR EXPERIENCE INCLUDES (Free)
30-minute indoor session at AMS Institute on how Amsterdam works as a deep tech testbed Guided 60-minute walking tour of the Marineterrein with four live experiment stops (autonomous water mobility, smart circular recycling, urban biodiversity, circular construction + solar) Direct conversation with the researchers, founders, and entrepreneurship programme leads behind each pilot Insight into how capital — including philanthropic capital — plugs into the urban experimentation ecosystem Short closing reflection and informal networking
YOUR HOSTS Ioannis Ioannidis and the team at AMS Institute, the Amsterdam Institute for Advanced Metropolitan Solutions — Amsterdam's applied research institute working at the intersection of city, science, and startups.
A NOTE ON THIS EVENT This is a community-organised side event on the KFF26 Luma calendar, hosted by AMS Institute. It's not part of the official KFF26 programme; it's one of the gatherings the community is putting on around the festival to extend the conversation and the connections.
This side event is open to KFF26 ticket holders only. You'll be asked to confirm at RSVP.
Capacity is intimate (~40). Reserve early.