“Five years of building an urban tech incubator have grown into a thriving ecosystem and network of city entrepreneurs, spawning programs like Startup Booster, Amsterdam Circular, and most recent, our UrbanTech Copilot.”
Stephan van Dijk
Head of Innovation
Apply here for our the AMS Startup Booster Batch #9
Applications are open until September 13 and will be accepted on a rolling basis. Booster Batch #9 will start in September.
Over the past five years, the AMS Institute's Entrepreneurship team has been supporting more than 150 early-stage startups to evolve into validated, impact-driven urban tech companies. Firmly embedded within Amsterdam's innovation ecosystem, the program connects talent with research, networks, and real-world demand, all in the name of creating real positive impact for cities.
Founders are challenged to rethink their urban tech ideas from the ground up. Rather than building solutions in isolation, they learn to deeply understand their potential market. Workshops, coaching, and hands-on validation help teams test their ideas but also develop what it really means to build teams and navigate uncertainty.
"Five years ago, we built the Booster around a simple principle: execution beats theory every time. Customer conversations, real-world testing, and continuous iteration will teach you more than months of researching and planning ever can. Our goal was to help founders go from zero to one, leaving the program with a validated opportunity, a tested solution, and ideally their first pilot, customer, or market traction, all within five months."
"Watching teams from those early batches still out there solving urban challenges at scale today, from energy and mobility, to circularity and beyond, is exactly what we built this program for." said Booster lead Ioannis Ioannidis, pictured here with other budding founders.
Geofluxus — A long-standing success story
What started as research at TU Delft, GeoFluxus has grown into an internationally-active company helping governments and industries rethink waste. Co-founders Arnout Sabbe and Rusne Sileryte built a SaaS platform that maps complex waste streams and identifies smarter, and more circular ways to process them.
Alumni of the very first Booster cycle, they first had to bridge a significant gap. "We had to learn an entirely new language: how to turn scientific research into a company that solves a real market problem," says Sabbe, who explained how the AMS Startup Booster was instrumental in making it happen.
The challenge was not on scaling up, but on finding a product-market fit. And it worked. "When you're in a sales conversation and you feel that everything you say is confirmed or repeated back by the customer, then you know you're working on a topic that has real future potential."
Today, their platform automates waste reporting and analysis, replacing hours of manual work with real-time insights and recommendations. GeoFluxus is active in more than 15 countries, serving large companies in construction, manufacturing, petrochemicals, agri-food, and public authorities.
Credits: Vincent Basler
Tiger Parts — Scaling up repairability
When François Lesage helped a friend repair a broken part in a 1948 champagne bottling machine, he discovered a much larger problem. Across Europe, older machines are scrapped simply because replacement parts are no longer produced.
Tiger Parts was founded to change that. The startup reverse-engineers hard-to-find mechanical components and connects customers with a network of manufacturing partners across Europe and India to reproduce them on demand. "Why would you replace something when you know it can still work? The mission is to maintain the old and push repairability," Lesage said.
According to Lesage, the Startup Booster gave him "all the methodologies, the tools, the contacts that I wouldn't have had by myself. The Startup Booster really helps you not to lose a lot of time." It has since launched its platform and is ramping up.
The Booster program helped sharpen that mission by challenging assumptions and connecting the team directly with potential customers, many of which keep coming back for more orders: an early sign the model works.
The next frontier: using AI to cut the cost of reverse engineering, eventually making repair accessible not just for industry but for individual consumers and community repair initiatives.
Credits: Tiger Parts
OJOA — Upcycling discarded produce
Marie Degoulet started with a simple idea: to make it easier to bring more nature, joy and taste into everyday life. That became OJOA, a startup transforming "imperfect" fruit and vegetables that would otherwise go to waste into snacks and drink enhancers for the health-conscious.
The AMS Startup Booster was a turning point because it pushed Degoulet to move beyond ideas and into action. "The program really forced me to get into the field and speak directly with consumers," she says. Early market tests revealed that customers wanted more convenient formats, leading OJOA to pivot from fruit powders to the solid elixirs and crunchy fruit snacks it offers today. The program also provided the space, ecosystem and accountability that can shape a tangible product and business.
Since the Booster days, the growing business enjoys increasing demand and is scaling distribution, building partnerships with shops and wellness spaces in Amsterdam, and exploring opportunities with larger retailers. OJOA continues to work directly with farmers and food surplus platforms to rescue overstock fruit and give it a second life.
Credits: Pardis Faqiri
Citypump-E — When you have to go full throttle
Construction sites across Amsterdam run on diesel pumps that are noisy, polluting, and inefficient. Citypump-E is determined to replace them. Founded by Daniël Geerling, it is a compact, electric, multi-purpose pump system for construction sites, sewer works, and water management that outperforms existing electric alternatives on efficiency.
"We can build machines," he said. "But 'playing startup' is a different trade entirely." The program helped him present professionally, navigate public procurement, and broaden his approach to financing.
Before joining the booster, a €290,000 subsidy for research and development marked a turning point for Daniël Geerling, who then developed the business case during his time in the AMS Startup Booster. He now aims to have 20 to 30 units operational by year's end, with pilots planned in Amsterdam.
Credits: Citypump-E
The Swap Club — Swapping ideas for strategy
An estimated 280,000 garments are thrown away every day in the Netherlands, not because they are worn out, but because consumers lack reuse options. The Swap Club offers an alternative. Founded by Gokce Iliklier, it is a digital points-based urban reuse platform where items are assessed on arrival and converted into digital points that never expire. Customers spend points at pop-up events held across hotels, museums, libraries, and offices in Amsterdam.
Joining the AMS Startup Booster was as much about emotional survival as strategy. "I was also about to quit, because it's hard to build a new business model, especially in circularity, where there is not much knowledge or support in the market," Iliklier said. The program brought structure, community, and strong timing: her future co-founder Megan de Klein joined just as it began.
Last year the platform collected 40,000 items and recirculated around 70% back into the local market. Since April 2024, The Swap Club has grown to six events per month, added a monthly membership program, and organises B2B events. Like OJOA, The Swap Club joined Amsterdam Circular, seeking the investment needed to open a permanent clubhouse and take the platform to the next level.
Credits: Monique Stoel
