Data & Statistics March 2026 • 18 min read • Updated: 9 November 2026

AI in the Netherlands statistics 2026

50+ verified figures on AI adoption, investment, talent, sector use, regulation and infrastructure in the Netherlands, each linked to its source (CBS, Eurostat, European Commission, Stanford HAI, Techleap, RVO). Updated 9 November 2026. Want to turn the data into growth? See our AI marketing agency.

33%

of Dutch businesses (10+ employed) use AI

6th in the EU (Eurostat: 33.21%)

CBS, 2026

17%

of all Dutch businesses (2+ employed) use AI

2023: 8%

CBS, 2025

44.7%

of Dutch people used generative AI

EU: 32.66%

Eurostat, 2025

708,800

ICT specialists in the Netherlands

7.2% of employment (EU 5.0%)

Eurostat, 2025

Ruud ten Have

Ruud ten Have

Ruud is a digital marketer with 10+ years of experience in online advertising and AI implementation. At Searchlab, he combines strategic thinking with hands-on AI tooling to deliver measurable results for businesses.

Updated: 9 November 2026 • Sources: CBS, Eurostat, European Commission, Stanford HAI, Techleap, RVO

01 — AI Adoption

AI adoption in the Netherlands

One in three Dutch businesses with 10 or more employed persons used AI in 2025, against one in five across the EU. Including the smallest firms (2 to 10 employed persons), the share is one in six. Smaller companies in particular benefit from an AI marketing partner for SMBs. For Dutch companies, how to become visible in AI answers: more on AI search visibility (in Dutch).

33%

Businesses using AI (NL, 10+)

2024: 23%

CBS, 2026

19.95%

EU average (10+)

NL: 33.21%

Eurostat, 2025

66%

Large businesses (250+)

2024: 53%, 2023: 42%

CBS, 2025

31.87%

SMEs (10-249 employed)

EU: 18.9%

Eurostat, 2025

The Netherlands in a European context

Country AI use 2025 AI use 2024 Change (pp)
Denmark 42.03% 27.58% +14.45
Finland 37.82% 24.37% +13.45
Sweden 35.04% 25.09% +9.95
Belgium 34.54% 24.71% +9.83
Luxembourg 33.61% 23.73% +9.88
Netherlands 33.21% 23.06% +10.15*
Germany 25.97% 19.75% +6.22
France 18.16% 9.91% +8.25
EU average 19.95% 13.48% +6.47

Enterprises with 10 or more employed persons, excluding the financial sector. The Netherlands ranks 6th of the EU-27; Romania is lowest at 5.21%. *Eurostat flags a break in the Dutch time series in 2025, so the jump from 23.06% to 33.21% is not purely growth. (Eurostat, 2025)

The gap is visible in every size class: 28.76% of Dutch firms with 10-49 employed persons use AI (EU 17.0%), 46.62% with 50-249 (EU 30.36%) and 67.64% with 250+ (EU 55.03%). (Eurostat, 2025)

Which AI? In 2025, 22.93% of Dutch businesses used text mining (EU 11.75%), 16.34% language or code generation (EU 8.76%), 11.61% speech recognition, 9.51% machine learning, 8.45% workflow automation, 5.2% image recognition and 2.36% autonomous machines. (Eurostat, 2025)

Sources: CBS, 2026, CBS, 2025, Eurostat, 2025

02 — Investment

AI investment & ecosystem NL

There is no verified total for AI investment in the Netherlands: neither CBS, Stanford HAI nor Techleap publishes a Dutch AI investment or venture capital figure. What can be measured: public programmes, R&D tax credits and the European context.

AiNed (National Growth Fund)

€276M

Maximum for the AiNed programme

€44M awarded, €44M conditional, €188M reserved (2021) • Universiteit Leiden, 2021

AI factory Groningen

€200M+

AI expertise centre plus supercomputer

State €71M, region €60M, EuroHPC €71.7M • Dutch IT Channel, 2025

WBSO R&D tax credit

€1.9B

Awarded in 2025

18,932 companies, 97% SMEs • RVO, 2026

AI in R&D applications

+77%

More WBSO projects mention AI

Compared with five years earlier • RVO, 2026

Private AI investment, Europe

$20.92B

Europe, 2025

US: $285.88B, China: $12.41B • Stanford HAI AI Index, 2026

Global corporate AI investment

$581.69B

Record in 2025

Private: $344.66B (+127.5%) • Stanford HAI AI Index, 2026

AiNed is the main public AI programme: in 2021 the National Growth Fund set aside a maximum of €276 million, of which €44 million was awarded directly, €44 million conditionally and €188 million reserved. (Universiteit Leiden, 2021)

The AI factory in Groningen combines an AI expertise centre with an AI-optimised supercomputer. Funding: €71 million from several ministries, €60 million from the Groningen region and €71.7 million in EuroHPC co-financing, just over €200 million in total. (Dutch IT Channel, 2025)

Companies planned €8.7 billion in R&D costs under the WBSO in 2025; RVO notes a clear rise in both use and development of AI in project applications. (RVO, 2026)

Sources: Universiteit Leiden, 2021, Dutch IT Channel, 2025, RVO, 2026, Stanford HAI AI Index, 2026

03 — Startups & Scale-ups

AI startups & scale-ups in the Netherlands

How many AI startups the Netherlands has is not measured by any official source: CBS and Eurostat count AI use, not AI companies, and Techleap’s State of Dutch Tech 2026 gives no AI startup count or AI funding total. Below are the figures that are published.

10.9

AI professionals per 10,000 inhabitants

Highest AI talent density in Europe

Techleap, 2026

21.2%

Dutch conversion rate to scale-up

US: 80.9%

Techleap, 2026

+71%

Newly funded AI companies worldwide

2025 vs. 2024

Stanford HAI AI Index, 2026

Where Dutch R&D companies are located

Region (COROP) Companies using WBSO (2025) Note
Groot-Amsterdam 1,930 21% starters
Zuidoost-Noord-Brabant (Eindhoven) 1,692 14% starters
Utrecht 1,448 16% starters

These are all companies with an R&D tax credit, across all technologies, not AI companies only. In total 18,932 companies used the WBSO in 2025. (RVO, 2026)

Globally, generative AI grew by more than 200% in private investment and took nearly half of all private AI funding in 2025. (Stanford HAI AI Index, 2026) Techleap’s point for the Netherlands: the talent is there, but only 21.2% of Dutch startups convert to scale-up status, a quarter of the US rate. (Techleap, 2026)

Sources: Techleap, 2026, RVO, 2026, Stanford HAI AI Index, 2026

04 — Education & Talent

AI education & talent in the Netherlands

The Netherlands has a relatively large ICT workforce and uses generative AI at work far more than the EU average. Hiring ICT specialists is also harder than elsewhere.

708,800

ICT specialists (2025)

7.2% of employment, EU 5.0%

Eurostat, 2025

26.56%

Use generative AI for work

EU: 15.36%

Eurostat, 2025

15.3%

Businesses recruited ICT specialists

EU: 9.55% (2024)

Eurostat, 2024

9.65%

Had hard-to-fill ICT vacancies

EU: 5.49% (2024)

Eurostat, 2024

Generative AI use by purpose (people, 2025)

Purpose Netherlands EU
Any use (last 3 months) 44.70% 32.66%
Private purposes 28.07% 25.49%
Work 26.56% 15.36%
Formal education 13.10% 9.32%

Of Dutch generative AI users, 59.41% use it for work (EU 47.02%). (Eurostat, 2025) CBS adds that 90.4% of Dutch 18-25-year-olds have used an AI chatbot, against 20.6% of people aged 65 and over; 24% of adults used AI for work in the past three months. (CBS, 2026)

Of the businesses that recruited ICT specialists in 2024, roughly six in ten had hard-to-fill vacancies (9.65% of all businesses against 15.3% recruiting). (Eurostat, 2024) Techleap measures 10.9 AI professionals per 10,000 inhabitants, the highest density in Europe. (Techleap, 2026) There are no official Dutch figures for AI vacancies, AI graduates or AI salaries.

Sources: Eurostat, 2025, Eurostat, 2025, Eurostat, 2024, CBS, 2026, Techleap, 2026

05 — AI by Sector

AI by sector in the Netherlands

AI use differs sharply by sector. The information and communication sector leads; hospitality, construction and transport lag behind. CBS does not measure government or agriculture in this survey.

Information & communication

54%

Businesses using AI (2+)

2023: 28% • 10+: 70% • CBS, 2025

Specialist business services

31%

Businesses using AI (2+)

2023: 13% • 10+: 55% • CBS, 2025

Financial services

28%

Businesses using AI (2+)

2023: 14% • 10+: 59% • CBS, 2025

Real estate

21%

Businesses using AI (2+)

2023: 7% • CBS, 2025

Healthcare & welfare

16%

Businesses using AI (2+)

2023: 8% • CBS, 2025

Hospitality

6%

Businesses using AI (2+)

2023: 2% • CBS, 2025

All sectors (2+ employed, 2023 / 2024 / 2025): information and communication 28 / 49 / 54%; specialist business services 13 / 25 / 31%; financial services 14 / 16 / 28%; real estate 7 / 9 / 21%; energy, water and waste 9 / 14 / 18%; manufacturing 7 / 10 / 16%; rental and other services 8 / 12 / 16%; healthcare 8 / 10 / 16%; trade 7 / 11 / 12%; transport and storage 7 / 4 / 7%; construction 2 / 4 / 7%; hospitality 2 / 3 / 6%.

What AI is used for (2025, share of AI users): marketing or sales 35%, administration 32%, R&D or innovation 25%, production or service processes 18%, accounting 17%, ICT security 11%, logistics 4%.

Among businesses with 10+ employed persons, 70% of ICT firms, 59% of financial firms and 55% of specialist business services use AI; in hospitality, transport and construction it is 16 to 21%. (CBS, 2026)

Sources: CBS, 2025, CBS, 2026

06 — AI Companies

Dutch AI companies & success stories

There is no public register of Dutch AI companies, so no reliable count exists. What RVO does publish: how many companies do R&D, how often AI appears in that R&D, and examples of Dutch companies building AI.

R&D

WBSO: AI in Dutch R&D

In 2025, 18,932 companies used the WBSO R&D tax credit; 97% are SMEs. AI appears 77% more often in project applications than five years earlier, both as a technology and as a tool within other technologies.

18,932

Companies

97%

SMEs

+77%

AI in applications

HealthTech

Thirona: AI for lung specialists

Thirona builds LungQ, AI software that helps doctors navigate to tumours in the lungs. The company is one of the case studies in RVO’s WBSO annual report.

Deep tech

Fermioniq: quantum and AI

Fermioniq develops software that mimics the computing power of quantum computers by combining quantum and AI technology, for simulations in sectors such as aviation and water management.

Adoption is highest among large companies: 66% of Dutch businesses with 250 or more employed persons used AI in 2025, against 14% of businesses with 2 to 10 employed persons. (CBS, 2025)

Sources: RVO, 2026, CBS, 2025

07 — Policy & Regulation

Government policy & AI regulation

Dutch AI policy combines public programmes (AiNed, the AI factory) with the European AI Act, which has applied in general since 2 August 2026. This is factual information, not legal advice.

€276M

AiNed (max., National Growth Fund)

Decision 2021

Universiteit Leiden, 2021

2 Aug 2026

AI Act general application

In force since 1 Aug 2024

European Commission, 2026

€35M / 7%

Max. fine, prohibited AI

Of worldwide annual turnover

EU AI Act, Article 99

2 Dec 2027

High-risk rules (Annex III)

Extended by the AI Omnibus

European Commission, 2026

AI Act timeline

Date What applies
1 August 2024 AI Act enters into force
2 February 2025 Prohibited practices and AI literacy obligations
2 August 2025 Governance rules and obligations for general-purpose AI models
27 July 2026 AI Omnibus amendments enter into force
2 August 2026 General application, transparency rules, enforcement by the AI Office and national authorities
2 December 2027 High-risk systems in Annex III areas (e.g. employment, education, biometrics)
2 August 2028 High-risk systems in regulated products (Annex I, e.g. lifts, toys)

EU AI Act: fines

  • Prohibited AI practices: up to €35 million or 7% of worldwide annual turnover, whichever is higher
  • Other obligations of operators and notified bodies: up to €15 million or 3%
  • Incorrect or misleading information to authorities: up to €7.5 million or 1%
  • For SMEs and start-ups the lower of the two amounts applies

(EU AI Act, Article 99, European Commission, 2026)

Sources: European Commission, 2026, EU AI Act, Article 99, Universiteit Leiden, 2021

08 — Infrastructure

AI infrastructure in the Netherlands

Data centres, the Amsterdam internet exchange and a new AI factory form the physical base for AI in the Netherlands. Data centre electricity use is rising fast.

Data centres

~200

Data centres in the Netherlands

Mostly around Amsterdam • CBS, 2025

Electricity use

4.6%

Of Dutch electricity (2024)

5,100 GWh; 2021: 3.3% • CBS, 2025

Growth since 2021

+37%

Electricity supplied to data centres

2021-2024 • CBS, 2025

Large data centres

~45

Over 10 GWh per year

About 90% of data centre supply • CBS, 2025

AMS-IX peak

15.822 Tb/s

Peak traffic, Amsterdam

915 connected networks • AMS-IX, 2026

AI factory

2026

Expertise centre opens in Groningen

Supercomputer at full capacity early 2027 • Rijksoverheid, 2025

The AI factory in Groningen is run by a consortium with SURF, AIC4NL, TNO and Samenwerking Noord. (Rijksoverheid, 2025) Funding totals just over €200 million: €71 million national, €60 million regional and €71.7 million from EuroHPC. (Dutch IT Channel, 2025)

Data centres used 5,100 GWh in 2024 (provisional), 4.6% of all electricity in the Netherlands, up from 3.3% in 2021. About 45 large data centres account for roughly 90% of the supply. (CBS, 2025)

Sources: CBS, 2025, AMS-IX, 2026, Rijksoverheid, 2025, Dutch IT Channel, 2025

10 — Key Takeaways

Key takeaways

The 8 core insights from the verified data on AI in the Netherlands in 2026.

01

6th in the EU

33.21% of Dutch businesses (10+) use AI, against 19.95% in the EU (Eurostat 2025)

02

From 14% to 33% in two years

CBS: AI use by businesses with 10+ employed persons went from 14% (2023) to 33% (2025)

03

Size matters

66% of large businesses use AI, 14% of the smallest (2-10 employed persons)

04

People ahead of the EU

44.7% of the Dutch used generative AI in 2025, 26.56% for work (EU 15.36%)

05

ICT leads, hospitality lags

Information and communication 54%, hospitality 6% (businesses 2+)

06

Talent: dense but scarce

708,800 ICT specialists (7.2% of jobs); 9.65% of businesses had hard-to-fill ICT vacancies

07

Public money is targeted

AiNed max. €276M, AI factory €200M+, WBSO €1.9B with AI in applications +77%

08

Not measured

No official figure exists for the Dutch AI market, total AI investment or the number of AI startups

11 — Methodology & Sources

Our sources

CBS – Companies using AI above all for marketing or sales (December 2025)
CBS – Digitalisation and knowledge economy 2025, chapter 3 (2026)
CBS – AI in society: experiences and opinions (2026)
CBS – Data centres use 4.6 percent of electricity (December 2025)
Eurostat – Artificial intelligence by size class of enterprise, isoc_eb_ai (2025)
Eurostat – Individuals using generative AI tools, isoc_ai_iaiu (2025)
Eurostat – ICT specialists in employment, isoc_sks_itspt (2025)
Eurostat – Enterprises that recruited ICT specialists, isoc_ske_itrcrn2 (2024)
Eurostat – Digitalisation in Europe 2026
European Commission – AI Act regulatory framework (2026)
EU AI Act – Article 99, Penalties
Stanford HAI – AI Index Report 2026, Economy
Techleap – State of Dutch Tech 2026
Universiteit Leiden – National Growth Fund decision on AiNed (2021)
RVO – Focus Annual Report WBSO 2025 (2026)
Rijksoverheid – EUR 200 million for an AI factory in Groningen (June 2025)
Dutch IT Channel – Groningen gets AI factory of 200 million euros (December 2025)
AMS-IX – Amsterdam traffic and network statistics (2026)
Gartner – Agentic AI predictions (June 2025)

Updated 9 November 2026. Every figure on this page links to the source in which we found it. Populations differ: CBS reports for businesses with 2+ and 10+ employed persons, Eurostat for businesses with 10+ (excluding the financial sector). Percentages are shown as published by the source. Figures we could not verify have been removed; figures that are not measured (Dutch AI market size, total AI investment, number of AI startups or AI vacancies) are not estimated.

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12 — Frequently Asked Questions

FAQ: AI in the Netherlands

How does the Netherlands compare to other EU countries on AI?
The Netherlands ranks 6th in the EU: 33.21% of Dutch businesses with 10 or more employed persons used AI in 2025, against an EU average of 19.95% (Eurostat). Denmark (42.03%), Finland (37.82%), Sweden (35.04%), Belgium (34.54%) and Luxembourg (33.61%) score higher. Among people, 44.7% of the Dutch used generative AI, against 32.66% in the EU.
How much does the Netherlands invest in AI?
There is no verified total for AI investment in the Netherlands. Known public amounts: the National Growth Fund set aside a maximum of €276 million for AiNed (2021), and the AI factory in Groningen receives just over €200 million (€71 million national, €60 million regional, €71.7 million EuroHPC). Through the WBSO, RVO awarded €1.9 billion in R&D tax credits in 2025. Europe as a whole attracted $20.92 billion in private AI investment in 2025 (Stanford HAI).
How many AI startups does the Netherlands have?
No official source counts Dutch AI startups; CBS and Eurostat measure AI use, not AI companies, and Techleap’s State of Dutch Tech 2026 gives no count. Techleap does report 10.9 AI professionals per 10,000 inhabitants, the highest in Europe, and a scale-up conversion rate of 21.2% against 80.9% in the US. In WBSO R&D applications, AI appears 77% more often than five years earlier.
Which sectors in the Netherlands use AI the most?
According to CBS (businesses with 2+ employed persons, 2025), information and communication leads with 54%, followed by specialist business services (31%), financial services (28%) and real estate (21%). Healthcare is at 16%, construction and transport at 7% and hospitality at 6%. Among businesses with 10+ employed persons, 70% of ICT firms and 59% of financial firms use AI.
What is the impact of the EU AI Act on Dutch businesses?
The AI Act entered into force on 1 August 2024 and has applied in general since 2 August 2026. Prohibited practices have applied since 2 February 2025; rules for high-risk systems follow on 2 December 2027 (Annex III) and 2 August 2028 (Annex I). Fines go up to €35 million or 7% of worldwide annual turnover for prohibited AI practices; for SMEs the lower amount applies. No verified count exists of Dutch businesses affected.
How many AI job openings are there in the Netherlands and what does an AI specialist earn?
There are no official Dutch figures for AI vacancies or AI salaries. Eurostat does show that the Netherlands had 708,800 ICT specialists in 2025 (7.2% of employment, EU 5.0%), that 15.3% of businesses recruited ICT specialists in 2024 and that 9.65% had hard-to-fill ICT vacancies (EU 5.49%). 26.56% of the Dutch use generative AI for work, against 15.36% in the EU.

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