PortXL is the World's 1st Port & Maritime Accelerator. For five years now, PortXL has been committed to giving innovative (young) entrepreneurs a foothold in the maritime business world. In this way, we are working together to create a strong, future-proof port. And just now, in this time of crisis, we need to step up our efforts. That is why PortXL is coming up with a new approach, Match by PortXL. MATCH by PortXL's mission is simple: we want to realise 100 innovative projects in one year. How do we do this? By connecting companies and entrepreneurs, in other words: connecting ships with tugboats that accompany the large ship safely to the port. The cooperation between ship and tugboat is important to achieve the goal, one simply cannot do without the other. That is why I appeal to all businesses in the port of Rotterdam: think like a tugboat! Innovation is now a much-heard and popular word in the maritime sector. Every company does 'something' with it, some more than others. In practice, we at PortXL see that innovation is often also considered exciting. But the fact is: we can no longer ignore it. It is no longer a choice or a nice 'extra'; it is a necessity if we want to continue to exist together as a port, and as a port business sector. That is why PortXL set up MATCH by PortXL. Ten exclusively selected start-ups will be accelerated during an intensive 100-day mentorship driven program located in the city of Rotterdam. Apart from facilities and training, PortXL offers an ecosystem of founders, investors and corporate partners that supports and accelerates the entrepreneurial journey. On the final closure day, Shakedown, the teams will pitch their business ideas to an audience of launching customers, business angels, venture capitalists, multinationals, journalists and sponsors. We don’t just accelerate startups. We innovate ports for sustainable growth