The long-running saga over who will run the state-subsidised, startup-focused National Digital Research Centre (NDRC) has come to a conclusion with the award of a €17m, five-year contract to a consortium headed by Patrick Walsh’s Dogpatch Labs.
The NDRC will give a minimum of 13 startups per year €100,000, workspace and access to further funding sources and established “mentor” entrepreneurs.
As the figurehead of the NDRC consortium, Mr Walsh will receive a salary that’s “under six figures”, he said.
Last year, the outgoing CEO of the NDRC, Ben Hurley, was paid €254,000, including a one-off payment. In the three years prior to that, he was paid €160,000 per annum.