Deep-Tech Talent War
The Europe vs. North America Showdown
This pivotal report unravels the underlying trends in deep-tech between Europe and North America using talent as the lens.
Top three findings in the Deep-Tech Talent War 2024 Report:
Government investment fails to spur start-up growth
New deep-tech company formation has slowed dramatically since 2020 in Europe and North America. Countries have made major financial investments to drive a greater pace of deep-tech innovation, with little result. Countervailing winds of high capital costs and market consolidation have dampened the effect of government industrial policies.
Magnificent 7 Prioritise Low-Cost Hires
Market consolidation driven by GenAI is driving dramatic hiring shifts across Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia and Tesla. Deep-tech companies are favouring early-career, lower cost hires and cutting higher-cost experience.
American start-ups scale 2x faster than European
Deep-tech start-ups in the US are scaling twice as fast as European counterparts.
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Explore the dynamic evolution of over 6,100 top European and North American deep-tech companies racing to master cutting-edge technologies.
As nations bolster efforts to secure top talent, they pave the way for future prosperity and security with key initiatives like the US’s Inflation Reduction Act and Germany’s Digital Strategy. Our data offers a unique perspective on these initiatives’ successes.
In this competitive landscape, deep-tech firms vie for scarce science and engineering talent against sectors integrating advanced tech into their own growth plans.
Who’s setting the pace, and who’s falling behind?
insights #1
Deep-tech growth plateaued in 2020
We identified over 6,100+ European and North American companies as deep-tech for this report; the vast majority (5,688) were founded after 1990.
However, the growth in company formation has tailed off dramatically since 2020. Within our Zeki dataset for this report, only 13 new companies were formed in 2023 in North America and Europe compared to the peak of 566 new companies founded in 2017.
We also see that hiring trends have plateaued since 2020 among the US Big 5 and Europe’s top seven hirers, with the Big 5 experiencing a net talent loss in 2023.
insights #2
US leads in supplying talent to European deep-tech
European companies outpace their North American counterparts, attracting 14,937 advanced-skills professionals compared to 13,659 in North America. This paints two distinct scenarios.
European deep-tech firms are not only drawing US-trained talent back to their roots but are also enticing US nationals to seize new opportunities abroad. This talent flow underscores the global appeal and strategic positioning of European companies.
Dive into the full report and head to chapter three to uncover the key countries fuelling North America’s deep-tech talent pool.
Unveil the trends and strategic insights shaping the fiercely competitive deep-tech ecosystem.
The purpose of this report is to help organisations understand the underlying trends in deep-tech between North America and Europe using talent as the lens.
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