Ahold Delhaize and partners extend relationship with KickstartAI
May 19, 2026 – Along with our founding partners, ING, KLM and NS, Ahold Delhaize has announced we will extend our partnership with KickstartAI through 2029, marking a new multi-year phase for the foundation. Our goal with KickstartAI is to help AI move faster from experimentation to real-world application. We also aim to broaden the partner network to include new sectors and organizations, further increasing the impact of AI applications in the Netherlands.
KickstartAI was founded in 2019 based on the shared belief that the Netherlands needs not only strong technology and talent, but above all, organizations that know how to apply AI to issues that truly matter. That is why it focuses on applications that have a direct effect on societal challenges.
Knowledge sharing through KickstartAI is helping Ahold Delhaize brands solve some important challenges. For example, bol is using AI models to optimize the prediction of parcel volumes, resulting in more efficient transport. Albert Heijn is driving waste reduction through dynamic mark downs and Delhaize is lowering food waste through improved forecasting.
The foundation is also helping us attract, develop and retain top talent, contribute to academic and societal debate around AI decision making, and drive community and social impact. KickstartAI works with organizations such as Erasmus MC and the National Police on projects that show what is needed not only to develop and test AI, but also to truly implement and scale it in practice.
That practical experience is urgently needed. The Netherlands faces major societal and economic challenges, from declining productivity growth and rising healthcare costs to climate pressure and congested infrastructure. AI can help deliver concrete progress on precisely these types of issues, provided that organizations make the transition from experimentation to application at scale.
“KickstartAI not only provides a valuable place to exchange knowledge and jointly develop and implement AI applications,” said our CEO Frans Muller, “it also gives us the opportunity to apply our knowledge and experience beyond our own business, in areas where the impact is significant.”
“The biggest challenge around AI right now is not the technology itself, but the step from ambition to application,” said Erick Webbe, CEO of KickstartAI. “Real progress happens when you work together on concrete solutions, learn from them and share those lessons so others can move faster. In this new phase, we want to expand our group of partners so that successful applications and practical lessons can spread more quickly to other sectors and further increase the positive impact of AI in the Netherlands.”
About KickstartAI
KickstartAI is an independent foundation, founded by Ahold Delhaize, ING, KLM and NS, that helps organizations move from individual AI pilots to demonstrable societal impact. KickstartAI shows where AI works in practice, what is needed to scale successful solutions, and how those lessons can be applied more broadly in the Netherlands. For more information, visit kickstart.ai.