The Closure of the NDRC Exposes Ireland’s Inability to Navigate Multipolarity

Founded over two decades ago, the National Digital Research Centre (NDRC) announced that its position as the oasis for Ireland’s start-up ecosystem has concluded.

Its cessation, which is scheduled for November 2025, was induced by the decision of the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications (DECC) to not “procure a new service contract for NDRC beyond its current contract expiration in November 2025.”

In a country where metros are a rarer sight than banshees, the NDRC’s efficacy is anomalous, having advanced “early-stage digital enterprises” and “aided portfolio companies in raising €500 million, of which €200 million was secured in the last four years alone.”

Absent NDRC’s investment and mentoring via its acceleration programmes, would-be start-ups have few options to adequately meet their needs in the highly competitive world of tech. Commentators on X have noted that whilst Enterprise Ireland “provide support, there is still the issue of diversification of funding in Ireland”.

In response to the announcement, a joint letter was issued by a group of Irish technology start-up founders, including Paul Sheridan of Lynq, Luke Mackey of Kota, Eoin Cambay of Swan and Will O'Brien from Ulysses.

The letter is reproachful of the DECC’s decision, contending that it “threatens to dismantle a proven success model for building homegrown businesses for what appears to be nothing more than bureaucratic pride.”

In an age wherein 80% of Irish corporation tax revenue derives from MNCs, there is an inanity inherent in quashing the means whereby start-ups can become successful. This is exacerbated when one recalls Trump’s designs on MNCs domiciled in the Irish economy.

Multipolarity signifies the end of the ‘90s consensus. At one stage, Irish politicians and senior civil servants could reasonably rely on the subsistence of multilateralism and free trade - this is no longer a guarantee.

The solution, in part, entails investing in start-ups, fostering an eco-system conducive to networking and connection-formation between new and established industry participants, and mentorship to give Irish tech start-ups a competitive edge.

In short, what the NDRC will cease doing if the DECC’s decision is not reversed.

If Ireland isn’t to buckle before macro-trends beyond its power to control (and its politicians’ ability to cognise!), it must develop an anti-fragile economy.