Marco Bianchi 
A Dutch analysis by Floowy.ai and DGTLbase reveals that young adults struggle to recognise AI‑generated images, underscoring the importance of the EU AI Act’s new labelling rules for AI‑created content.
Havas has taken over the Dutch sport‑marketing firm SportVibes, bringing it into the Havas Play network. SportVibes, founded in 2003, is known for connecting fans with brands and organizing campaigns for major events such as the Olympic Games and Formula 1. The acquisition also includes Track Record, SportVibes’ digital commerce unit. The deal strengthens Havas Play’s position in sport, entertainment and cultural marketing across the Benelux region.
Italian HR‑tech startup Talentware raised €3.3 million in a seed round led by CDP Venture Capital, with participation from 360 Capital and several angels. The funding will be used to grow the team, enhance its AI‑native skill‑intelligence platform, and expand into new European markets.
Italian agrifoodtech startup Vinhood secured a €3 million funding round led by Linfa, the impact‑investing fund of Riello Investimenti. The capital will help the company enhance its AI‑driven taste‑profiling platform and accelerate its expansion across new markets and product categories.
adpaq introduced a new MCP server that enables agentic AI to set up, target, link creatives and report on programmatic audio campaigns via natural language. The solution is being piloted with Abovomaxlead to assess speed, reliability and user control before a broader release.
The Dutch online supermarket Picnic achieved a positive EBITDA of €4 million and positive operating cash flow in the Netherlands for the first time, while its overall 2025 results showed a net loss of €272 million due to continued investment in growth, including new distribution centres in Germany. Revenue grew 24% to €1.9 billion and the company now serves 3.6 million customers across the Netherlands, Germany and France.
European Payments Initiative (EPI) announced that the new payment scheme Wero will give Dutch e‑commerce merchants an extra 1.5 years to implement the required consumer‑protection measures. The deadline for introducing purchase protection has been moved from October 2026 to the end of 2028, and the transaction pricing will stay at current iDEAL levels until then. Additional Wero products, such as subscriptions, are expected in 2027, with purchase protection becoming available with those new offerings.
Contents announced its sixth acquisition, buying Spanish fintech software firm Balio. The deal expands Contents’ European footprint, adds Balio’s financial‑wellbeing platform and its trusted corporate client base to Contents’ AI‑driven enterprise suite, and will accelerate Balio’s growth across Europe. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Cubbit and GigaCloud are building a sovereign, resilient cloud service for Ukraine and Poland. The solution fragments, encrypts and distributes data across multiple trusted sites, ensuring continuous access even if a data centre is compromised. The partnership aims to meet strict GDPR and regional data‑sovereignty requirements for critical organisations, especially in defence and government sectors.
Dutch fintech Mollie is committing €350 million to accelerate its European expansion, positioning itself as a multi‑service platform for merchants. The plan includes hiring, product development and market entry across the continent, reflecting the company’s shift from a single‑service payment provider to a broader superapp model.