His path began at Delft University of Technology, where he studied mechanical engineering and captained the Delft Hyperloop team that won the first edition of the SpaceX Hyperloop Competition in 2017. He co-founded Hardt Hyperloop shortly after, taking hyperloop from the first student prototype to Europe's largest operational hyperloop test facility, the 420-meter European Hyperloop Center, in under a decade. In that time, Hardt grew from four founders to a team of nearly 50, built strategic partnerships with the Dutch National Railways (NS), the Dutch Government and the European Commission, and initiated the European hyperloop standard backed by EU member states.
In 2025, Tim was inducted as a Young Engineer of the Netherlands Academy of Engineering (NAE). Having experienced first-hand what it takes to scale deep-tech in Europe, he is closely engaged in the conversation on the systemic changes needed to help Dutch startups and scale-ups grow. It is Tim's passion to work with ambitious teams to create long-lasting impact.
