In 2025, Europe’s AI landscape is buzzing with potential, and the recent report from StepUp Startups sheds light on a crucial aspect: the role of open-source AI in making the region a global leader. This exploration isn’t just about tech advancements, it’s about redefining how we compete and innovate in a fair, transparent way. As a serial entrepreneur, I’ve seen firsthand how startups can leverage open-source tools to punch above their weight.
Why Open-Source Matters to European Startups
Open-source tools go beyond transparency; they’re practical solutions for entrepreneurs like me. Instead of sinking thousands into proprietary software, we can build projects on reliable, openly available AI models without sacrificing quality. The report highlights that over half of developers in Europe regularly use open-source models, datasets, and tools, creating a foundation for safer, scalable AI. For startups, this means lower operational costs and fewer barriers to experimentation.
Here’s where Europe has an edge. While global competitors focus on flashy models with enormous resources, we excel in combining research, collaboration, and ethical AI. The European Commission’s initiative to fund open-source AI is a perfect match for how startups operate here: lean, innovative, and resourceful.
Key Findings: What Entrepreneurs Should Know
The StepUp Startups study offers insight into where Europe stands, and what needs a push.
1. Adoption is slow, but impactful
- Only **14% of EU businesses** used AI in their operations in 2024. For comparison, countries like the U.S. hover **above 30%**.
- Startups, especially in niche sectors, need stronger incentives and infrastructure. Think AI factories providing GPU resources at no cost.
2. Talent remains Europe’s stronghold
- Europe is home to unmatched AI talent. Universities and institutes regularly release models, tools, and studies that shape the field.
- Over **60% of chatbots and AI assistants** used in sectors like healthcare, retail, and finance rely on European innovations.
3. Public Support Changes Everything
- Initiatives like **EuroHPC supercomputing access** open doors for smaller startups to compete globally.
- Projects like Latvia’s **TildeOen LLM**, an open-source language model trained with free EU resources, prove this approach works.
How Your Startup Can Leverage Open-Source AI
Let’s talk strategy. If you’re wondering how to adopt open-source AI without sinking time or money into endless development cycles, these steps can help.
Step 1: Identify Your Needs
Use open models for specific goals. For marketing analytics? Tools like spaCy simplify natural language tasks. Predictive models? PyTorch frameworks cater to that need.
Step 2: Search for Resources
Explore European platforms offering free access to computing clusters. AI Factories and public EU grants support startups with costs related to training and experimenting with models.
Step 3: Collaborate
Join local incubators or accelerators focused on deep/machine learning innovation. Working with academia or like-minded founders helps share knowledge and mitigate setup challenges.
Step 4: Build Trust
Open-source promotes trust. Presenting clear documentation of your AI model helps win stakeholders and users. This is especially crucial in industries like healthcare and fintech.
Common Startup Blind Spots
Getting started? Watch out for these mistakes:
- Rushing to Scale
Many founders throw open-source solutions at a problem without testing scalability. Start small and refine as you go. - Ignoring the Talent Pool
Hiring local developers familiar with tools like scikit-learn guarantees faster adaptation to European contexts. - Underestimating Regulatory Impact
Europe’s privacy rules demand compliance. Open-source models like GPT derivatives often come with unknown risks. Always evaluate data provenance.
Perspectives
As someone who champions a multidisciplinary approach, I’ve realized open-source isn’t just a technology choice, it’s existential for European startups. It enables smaller players to access resources previously out of reach and aligns beautifully with EU values on fairness and transparency. Let’s not forget the competitive story here. Europe’s love for ethical AI allows us to stand out globally, especially when customers and governments increasingly value responsible tech.
Opportunities Ahead
The StepUp Startups report is full of promise. Startups should look beyond proprietary tools and dive into open-source ecosystems that empower growth. European innovation thrives in niches, healthcare, energy, multilingual AI, where open-source effort excels. Support initiatives like the EU Apply AI framework are game changers by addressing the adoption barriers for businesses.
Let’s take advantage of the tools and strategies at our disposal. Open-source AI isn’t just the sustainable choice, it might be the smartest one for positioning Europe’s startup network as a key player in global tech. If you’re ready to scale responsibly, the infrastructure is being built and waiting. Europe isn’t missing from the AI race, it’s rethinking how to win.
FAQ
1. How is open-source AI different from proprietary AI?
Open-source AI involves tools, models, and datasets with openly available code and documentation, enabling transparency and collaboration. Proprietary AI restricts access, locking users into specific systems. Learn more about Open-Source AI
2. Why does open-source AI matter to European startups?
Open-source AI reduces costs, increases transparency, and provides resources like reusable tools and datasets. It aligns with EU values on fairness and scalability. Discover why Open-Source AI matters
3. What are the main findings from the StepUp Startups report?
The report highlights low AI adoption among European businesses (14%) compared to other regions, Europe’s talent advantage, and how open-source AI infrastructure, like EuroHPC, can bridge the gap. Explore the StepUp Startups report
4. How does Europe excel in AI talent?
Europe hosts cutting-edge AI research and releases influential tools like PyTorch and scikit-learn. Over 60% of AI assistants in sectors such as finance leverage European innovations. Learn about European AI Talent
5. What initiatives support European AI startups?
Initiatives like EU Apply AI Strategy, AI Factories, and EuroHPC supercomputing access provide grants and free computational resources to help startups scale AI models. Learn how EU supports AI Startups
6. What are AI Factories?
AI Factories are EU-funded hubs providing free access to high-performance computing clusters, enabling startups to train and test models at reduced costs. Discover AI Factories
7. Can open-source AI support multilingual innovation?
Yes, Europe leads multilingual AI development with projects like TildeOen LLM, trained on EU-funded supercomputers to create open-source language models. Explore TildeOen LLM
8. What challenges do European startups face in AI adoption?
Challenges include low adoption rates among businesses, limited access to GPU resources for smaller companies, and regulatory compliance with data laws like GDPR. Discover EU AI adoption challenges
9. How can startups best utilize open-source AI?
Startups can start by identifying needs, using platforms like spaCy and PyTorch, applying for EU grants for computational resources, and fostering collaborations with universities. Learn more on leveraging AI
10. How does open-source AI contribute to ethical AI development?
Open-source promotes trust and transparency, with clear documentation enabling safer, more responsible model development, particularly in sensitive industries like healthcare. Learn about Ethical AI in Europe
About the Author
Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. Throughout her startup experience she has applied for multiple startup grants at the EU level, in the Netherlands and Malta, and her startups received quite a few of those. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.
Violetta Bonenkamp's expertise in CAD sector, IP protection and blockchain
Violetta Bonenkamp is recognized as a multidisciplinary expert with significant achievements in the CAD sector, intellectual property (IP) protection, and blockchain technology.
CAD Sector:
- Violetta is the CEO and co-founder of CADChain, a deep tech startup focused on developing IP management software specifically for CAD (Computer-Aided Design) data. CADChain addresses the lack of industry standards for CAD data protection and sharing, using innovative technology to secure and manage design data.
- She has led the company since its inception in 2018, overseeing R&D, PR, and business development, and driving the creation of products for platforms such as Autodesk Inventor, Blender, and SolidWorks.
- Her leadership has been instrumental in scaling CADChain from a small team to a significant player in the deeptech space, with a diverse, international team.
IP Protection:
- Violetta has built deep expertise in intellectual property, combining academic training with practical startup experience. She has taken specialized courses in IP from institutions like WIPO and the EU IPO.
- She is known for sharing actionable strategies for startup IP protection, leveraging both legal and technological approaches, and has published guides and content on this topic for the entrepreneurial community.
- Her work at CADChain directly addresses the need for robust IP protection in the engineering and design industries, integrating cybersecurity and compliance measures to safeguard digital assets.
Blockchain:
- Violetta’s entry into the blockchain sector began with the founding of CADChain, which uses blockchain as a core technology for securing and managing CAD data.
- She holds several certifications in blockchain and has participated in major hackathons and policy forums, such as the OECD Global Blockchain Policy Forum.
- Her expertise extends to applying blockchain for IP management, ensuring data integrity, traceability, and secure sharing in the CAD industry.
Violetta is a true multiple specialist who has built expertise in Linguistics, Education, Business Management, Blockchain, Entrepreneurship, Intellectual Property, Game Design, AI, SEO, Digital Marketing, cyber security and zero code automations. Her extensive educational journey includes a Master of Arts in Linguistics and Education, an Advanced Master in Linguistics from Belgium (2006-2007), an MBA from Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden (2006-2008), and an Erasmus Mundus joint program European Master of Higher Education from universities in Norway, Finland, and Portugal (2009).
She is the founder of Fe/male Switch, a startup game that encourages women to enter STEM fields, and also leads CADChain, and multiple other projects like the Directory of 1,000 Startup Cities with a proprietary MeanCEO Index that ranks cities for female entrepreneurs. Violetta created the "gamepreneurship" methodology, which forms the scientific basis of her startup game. She also builds a lot of SEO tools for startups. Her achievements include being named one of the top 100 women in Europe by EU Startups in 2022 and being nominated for Impact Person of the year at the Dutch Blockchain Week. She is an author with Sifted and a speaker at different Universities. Recently she published a book on Startup Idea Validation the right way: from zero to first customers and beyond, launched a Directory of 1,500+ websites for startups to list themselves in order to gain traction and build backlinks and is building MELA AI to help local restaurants in Malta get more visibility online.
For the past several years Violetta has been living between the Netherlands and Malta, while also regularly traveling to different destinations around the globe, usually due to her entrepreneurial activities. This has led her to start writing about different locations and amenities from the POV of an entrepreneur. Here’s her recent article about the best hotels in Italy to work from.
About the Publication
Fe/male Switch is an innovative startup platform designed to empower women entrepreneurs through an immersive, game-like experience. Founded in 2020 during the pandemic "without any funding and without any code," this non-profit initiative has evolved into a comprehensive educational tool for aspiring female entrepreneurs.The platform was co-founded by Violetta Shishkina-Bonenkamp, who serves as CEO and one of the lead authors of the Startup News branch.
Mission and Purpose
Fe/male Switch Foundation was created to address the gender gap in the tech and entrepreneurship space. The platform aims to skill-up future female tech leaders and empower them to create resilient and innovative tech startups through what they call "gamepreneurship". By putting players in a virtual startup village where they must survive and thrive, the startup game allows women to test their entrepreneurial abilities without financial risk.
Key Features
The platform offers a unique blend of news, resources,learning, networking, and practical application within a supportive, female-focused environment:
- Skill Lab: Micro-modules covering essential startup skills
- Virtual Startup Building: Create or join startups and tackle real-world challenges
- AI Co-founder (PlayPal): Guides users through the startup process
- SANDBOX: A testing environment for idea validation before launch
- Wellness Integration: Virtual activities to balance work and self-care
- Marketplace: Buy or sell expert sessions and tutorials
Impact and Growth
Since its inception, Fe/male Switch has shown impressive growth:
- 5,000+ female entrepreneurs in the community
- 100+ startup tools built
- 5,000+ pieces of articles and news written
- 1,000 unique business ideas for women created
Partnerships
Fe/male Switch has formed strategic partnerships to enhance its offerings. In January 2022, it teamed up with global website builder Tilda to provide free access to website building tools and mentorship services for Fe/male Switch participants.
Recognition
Fe/male Switch has received media attention for its innovative approach to closing the gender gap in tech entrepreneurship. The platform has been featured in various publications highlighting its unique "play to learn and earn" model.