03 Jul 2025
Prosus publishes new research report on Dutch state of AI, with Dealroom.co and Techleap
The Netherlands has the potential to become Europe’s AI powerhouse. The country accounts for 8% of Europe’s AI talent pool, despite representing only 2.8% of its population. It is one of Europe's main magnets for global AI talent, with 23% of AI professionals from non-European countries based in the Netherlands. Yet, despite this solid foundation, the Netherlands has so far lacked the momentum to lead AI development in Europe.
In a new research report titled State of AI in the Netherlands: Igniting Europe’s Hidden AI Powerhouse published in collaboration with Dealroom.co and Techleap, Prosus outlines an action plan to position the Netherlands as Europe’s AI leader. The report proposes eight concrete actions:
- AI sovereignty: Have infrastructure to build critical systems and models (e.g., AI Gigafactory and clean data).
- AI hub: Launch a campus-style AI hub in Amsterdam to concentrate talent and capital.
- Talent: Attract more top AI talent (fast visas, VC and R&D budgets), and negotiate strategic “re-imports” (joint labs, spin-outs, shared IP).
- Growth capital: Local pension funds to fill the growth capital gap.
- Big Tech: Get (European) Big Tech companies to concentrate their R&D efforts in the Netherlands.
- AI awareness: Start a national campaign to accelerate AI adoption in Dutch society.
- Moonshots: Launch AI XPrize for 2-4 moonshot ideas that the community can rally behind.
- Government as catalyst: Government as major procurer, Defense as a flywheel, open up public datasets.
To actively support the Dutch AI ecosystem, Prosus has committed to: building a Global AI Centre in Amsterdam; growing the Prosus AI team 5x over the next two years; and investing in the local AI startup ecosystem.
“The Netherlands is uniquely positioned to lead in the next wave of innovation, with brilliant founders, an abundance of talent and high-income consumers”, says Prosus CEO Fabricio Bloisi. “The Netherlands has a genuine opportunity to shape the future of AI — not just for Europe, but for the world. At Prosus, we are ready to do our part and help build the next generation of European AI companies. Together, we can turn today’s promise into tomorrow’s breakthroughs.”
“The Dutch AI ecosystem is brimming with potential, but that’s not enough to win,” says Constantijn van Oranje, Special Envoy at Techleap. “Though we have world-class talent, a tradition of scientific excellence, a growing community of founders tackling some of society’s biggest challenges, it is not coming together yet. We must raise our collective ambition.”
Download the full report here and read our blog post “The Netherlands: Europe’s Hidden AI Powerhouse at a Crossroads”.
About Prosus
Prosus is the power behind the world’s leading lifestyle ecommerce brands, across Europe, India, and Latin America, unlocking an AI-first world for our 2 billion customers.
The Prosus technology ecosystem spans food delivery, payments, classifieds, travel, events, and mobility. Our integrated approach enhances user engagement and creates the foundation for unprecedented AI capabilities through proprietary data and cross-service intelligence.
Through Prosus Ventures, we invest in companies which inspire and support the Prosus ecosystem. We search for new opportunities at the leading edge of AI and ecommerce, the digital AI workforce and in frontier technologies, such as robotics, drones and synbio.
The team actively backs exceptional entrepreneurs who are using technology to improve people’s everyday lives.
To find out more, please visit www.prosus.com.