INVENTORS from Netherlands

Top 4

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Dutch Inventors of all time. This list of famous Dutch Inventors is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.

1. Cornelis Drebbel (1572 - 1633)

With an HPI of 65.09, Cornelis Drebbel is the most famous Dutch Inventor.  His biography has been translated into 29 different languages on wikipedia.

Cornelis Jacobszoon Drebbel (Dutch pronunciation: [kɔrˈneːlɪ ˈɕaːkɔpsoːn ˈdrɛbəl]; 1572 – 7 November 1633) was a Dutch engineer and inventor. He was the builder of the first operational submarine in 1620 and an innovator who contributed to the development of measurement and control systems, optics and chemistry.

2. Zacharias Janssen (1585 - 1635)

With an HPI of 60.54, Zacharias Janssen is the 2nd most famous Dutch Inventor.  His biography has been translated into 22 different languages.

Zacharias Janssen; also Zacharias Jansen or Sacharias Jansen; 1585 – pre-1632) was a Dutch spectacle-maker who lived most of his life in Middelburg. He is associated with the invention of the first optical telescope and/or the first truly compound microscope, but these claims (made 20 years after his death) may be fabrications put forward by his son.

3. Lou Ottens (1926 - 2021)

With an HPI of 53.86, Lou Ottens is the 3rd most famous Dutch Inventor.  His biography has been translated into 22 different languages.

Lodewijk Frederik Ottens (21 June 1926 – 6 March 2021), known as Lou Ottens, was a Dutch engineer and inventor, best known as the inventor of the cassette tape, and for his work in helping to develop the compact disc. Ottens was employed by Philips for the entirety of his career.

4. Boyan Slat (b. 1994)

With an HPI of 36.09, Boyan Slat is the 4th most famous Dutch Inventor.  His biography has been translated into 22 different languages.

Boyan Slat (born 27 July 1994) is a Dutch inventor and entrepreneur. A former aerospace engineering student, he is the CEO of The Ocean Cleanup.