On 25 August, TTT-AI welcomed a full room at LAB42 for "Thinking About an AI Spin-off? Start Here," a practical afternoon for researchers, postdocs, and PhD students exploring what it takes to turn AI research into a company. The workshop was organised together with NWO, ICAI, ELLIS unit Amsterdam, ELIAS, and RVO, and brought together entrepreneurs, investors, and support organisations for one afternoon of information, insight, and inspiration.

The turnout matched exactly who the workshop was built for. Nearly half of everyone registered was still exploring the idea of a spin-off. A third had concrete plans underway. A handful had already founded one.

The programme moved from the practical to the personal. Ross Gordon (Amsterdam Academic Ventures) opened with a clear-eyed look at deep tech fundraising. His message: founders need to master the "deployment story," not just the discovery story. The number one reason startups fail isn't a lack of scientific breakthroughs. It's building something nobody needs.

Annemieke de Raad (TTT-AI/IXA) followed with a hands-on session on AI and IP within a university setting. Paul Blank (NWO) and Rob Overkleeft (RVO) then walked through the funding instruments available to early-stage spin-offs. Adela Pranindiati introduced ELIAS Startup Opportunities, the European platform connecting AI researchers with startups across the continent. It added a European dimension to an afternoon otherwise full of local, hands-on advice.

The energy shifted after the break. Julia Berezutskaya (UCANACT) and Jannes van Ingen (Beyond Weather) shared what building an AI spin-off actually looks like from the inside. Julia's team is developing brain-computer interface software. It turns brain signals into digital control for people who have lost speech and movement, a project that grew directly out of her PhD research at UMC Utrecht. Jannes traced Beyond Weather's journey from a VU Amsterdam research group to a company fine-tuning AI weather models for climate risk. He closed with a line that summed up the afternoon well: "You're never there. It's the team, the team, the team. And revenue, revenue, revenue."

The discussion and Q&A that followed carried straight into the drinks and networking. Many of the day's conversations kept going long after the formal programme ended.