Edwin Kuipers, program lead Applying AI Systems

Drs. Edwin Kuipers graduated in Natural Language Processing and Artificial Intelligence from the University of Groningen. He has since gained over twenty-five years of entrepreneurial experience in Big Data and AI, mainly in collaboration with knowledge institutions, and in complex and large-scale projects. Among other things, he founded Crowdynews, a large international scale-up with seventy international employees, available in twenty-five countries, with offices in Groningen, Boston, and Singapore, and hundreds of media companies as clients.

"I am very excited and motivated to use my years of entrepreneurial experience and extensive network from my role as program lead Applying AI Systems. If we give AI the right attention and energy now, and above all start working together in a good way, we will make the necessary meters in the coming years. Also internationally," says Edwin.    

Stefan Leijnen, program lead Europe

Dr. Stefan Leijnen has extensive experience in the field of AI as program lead Europe for AiNed. In recent years, he has worked at Netherlands AI Coalition on AI research, innovation and the importance of international connections. Previously, he worked as CTO for War Child and as an AI researcher at the Hogeschool van Amsterdam, Radboud University Nijmegen and University of British Columbia. Currently, in addition to his work for AiNed, he is also a lecturer at the Hogeschool Utrecht, where he contributes to explainable and reliable AI applications with a team of researchers.

Stefan: "There are great opportunities for the Netherlands to cooperate and grow together with European partners in the field of AI. The European Commission has ambitious plans that can strengthen the Dutch AI ecosystem and on which we can build. As program lead Europe , I am happy to put a lot of energy into making the Netherlands and Europe successful and sovereign in the field of AI."

Anita Lieverdink has extensive experience in setting up and managing public-private partnerships for scaling up innovation. She enjoys doing this, using her scientific background in both business administration and communication and from her vast experience and network. For the last seven-plus years, her focus has been entirely on mobilizing ecosystems around tech startups and their breakthrough innovations. The high level of ambition, innovativeness, guts and perseverance of these entrepreneurs inspire her greatly. Anita played an important role in the creation and growth of the Netherlands AI Coalition as chair of the Startups and Scale-ups working group and later also as chair of the Program Team.

"As impact lead Breaking barriers, I am enthusiastically committed to creating a strong support network to help young AI companies in their challenges to scale up and make big impact," Anita said.

 

Emile Jaspar, impact lead Learning communities

Emile Jaspar has a wide range of knowledge in the field of AI. He has experience as a researcher developing an AI software system for education and works as a lecturer at Avans University of Applied Sciences, where he teaches subjects such as AI and Data Science. In these classes, he emphasizes the practical application of AI by conducting projects for corporate clients. His expertise extends not only to students, but also to executives and employees. In his role as content manager within the Learning Community AI for Security, he also advises and guides organizations in various industries on AI.

Emile: "With my business background and AI expertise, I strive as an impact lead Learning communities to introduce employees, citizens, students and other stakeholders to AI and help them become 'AI savvy'."