I attended a Tech Makers pitches and networking event in Amsterdam to meet founders, builders and people creating interesting companies in the Dutch tech ecosystem.
In this video, I share conversations with 3 tech founders building in AI, trading infrastructure, software, data science and fairness intelligence.
The event left me with one clear feeling:
Amsterdam tech is booming.
There is a lot of talent being built here, and events like Tech Makers give founders something extremely valuable: visibility, conversations and access to the right network.
0:48 Nico Schirrmacher, Profectus AI
5:47 Carla Kerstens, Kindlee
18:37 Nitin Sood, Gravity Consulting
If you are a founder, investor, operator, student, freelancer or someone looking for opportunities in the Netherlands, I hope this video gives you a useful look into the startup scene here.
What we learned
1Start with co-founders if you can — completely different angles make much richer decisions than building alone.
2It will be much harder and take longer than you think — and you only fail if you quit: take feedback, adjust, keep going.
3Take risks while you can — don't get so comfortable that you stop; and keep your energy and curiosity beyond work.
People in this conversation
N
Nico Schirrmacher
Founder · Profectus AI
Profectus AI is a no-code drag-and-drop builder — 'WordPress for trading strategies' — where amateur traders create algorithmic trading strategies visually and backtest them in-platform, with early B2B traction at a Dutch investment fund.
Challenge
Being hyper-niche: finding and reaching algorithmic traders is hard, and growing market share in that niche takes capital.
Lesson
Start with co-founders if you can — completely different angles make much richer decisions than building alone.
Looking for
Capital and investors to increase reach and become the reference for algorithmic trading.
C
Carla Kerstens
Founder · Kindlee
Kindlee is a dual platform for AI fairness, compliance and revenue recovery: it independently 'white-hat' tests customer-service AI at financial institutions for friction points affecting vulnerable groups — no PII, no integration — and quantifies the operational cost of unfairness (ISO 24027-based; Techstars graduate).
Challenge
Perception: companies used to run from the bias conversation, and regulation around the EU AI Act was long unclear — both are now turning in Kindlee's favour.
Lesson
It will be much harder and take longer than you think — and you only fail if you quit: take feedback, adjust, keep going.
Looking for
Pilots with banks, insurers and fintechs to quantify remediation impact, and investors with a responsible-AI / AI-infrastructure thesis.
N
Nitin Sood
Founder · Gravity Consulting
Gravity Consulting delivers data and AI solutions — engineering, governance, master data, warehousing — for clients like the Dutch Ministry of Defense, Heineken, BAM and Infineon, plus an offshore support model in India for 24/7 application support.
Challenge
Bureaucracy: slow approvals and coordination inside large government organisations, plus strict security constraints.
Lesson
Take risks while you can — don't get so comfortable that you stop; and keep your energy and curiosity beyond work.
Looking for
Companies interested in an affordable offshore support model — from AI and ERP developers to project managers.
