What Dutch startups are building at the intersection of logistics and mobility

Logistics and mobility are increasingly being treated as a single challenge in the Dutch startup scene. Where a delivery company and a carrier once operated in separate worlds, a growing number of companies are building software and hardware that address both simultaneously. Seventeen startups in the DutchStartup database fall into both categories at once, spread across The Hague, Rotterdam, Delft, Schiphol-Rijk and a handful of other cities.

The applications range from drones above aircraft to robots in hospital corridors, but a few common threads are discernible. Automation, real-time data and the elimination of manual work in environments where mistakes are costly, these themes recur time and again.

Aviation as a testing ground for speed and precision

Two of the companies focus specifically on aviation, a sector where downtime literally costs money and errors create safety risks. Mainblades, based in The Hague and founded in 2013, uses inspection drones to check aircraft. According to the company, such an inspection takes roughly ten times less time than manual work. Less time at the gate means more rotations per day.

BagsID, headquartered in Schiphol-Rijk and founded in 2018, operates on the other side of the airport: the baggage belt. Its system identifies suitcases using algorithms, without a barcode or label as the primary means of identification. In 2022, the company raised a seed round of €6.1 million. Both companies address processes that have traditionally been labour-intensive in aviation and where mistakes have direct operational consequences.

Shipping receives digital navigation assistance

Rotterdam is home to two companies seeking to digitalise inland waterway and maritime transport. Captain AI, founded in 2018 by Vincent Wegener, Gerard Simons, Gerard Kruisheer and Niels Stamhuis, develops AI navigation and collision warning systems for vessels. Customers such as Watertaxi Rotterdam, Kotug and the Port of Rotterdam Authority are involved in testing the technology in practice. Funding has remained limited so far, with contributions including support from Citylab010 and investor UNIIQ.

AlbatrosDigitalalso from Rotterdam, takes a different approach: ship simulations based on physical models, designed to reduce fuel consumption and optimise vessel behaviour. While Captain AI focuses on real-time warnings and autonomy, AlbatrosDigital works at the front end, on the design and training of crew and systems.

Electric charging as a logistics bottleneck

Rocsys, based in Rijswijk, addresses a problem that is becoming increasingly visible with the rise of electric commercial vehicles: who or what plugs in the cable? The company, founded in 2019 by Crijn Bouman, Joost van der Weijde and Kanter van Deurzen, develops systems that charge electric vehicles hands-free using robotics and computer vision. In depots with fifty charging points, Rocsys claims this can lead to 75 per cent higher operational efficiency and annual savings of approximately $1.7 million per location.

The funding is substantial: Rocsys has raised a total of around $56 million across four rounds, most recently a Series A extension of $13 million in April 2026, led by Capricorn Partners. Investors such as Scania Invest and SEB Greentech Venture Capital signal that interest from the transport and energy sector is concrete. The company now employs around sixty people and, in addition to its headquarters in Rijswijk, has an office in Portland, Oregon.

Delivery and warehousing become more intelligently layered

In the area of parcel delivery and warehouse logistics, three companies are working on software solutions. Plotwise, based in Delft and founded in 2015, optimises delivery routes and planning using AI. Viroteq, based in Almere and active since 2020, focuses on a specific part of the warehouse process: the stacking of mixed pallets by robots. According to the company, the software operates flexibly and does not need to know in advance which boxes will arrive. Viroteq received support through the TMI Proof of Concept Fund Flevoland and the StartLife programme.

Customs represents a separate bottleneck for cross-border e-commerce. ViaEurope, based in Rozenburg and founded in 2015, automates customs declarations for European e-commerce shipments. Its initial seed funding of €512,000 dates from the year of its founding.

Healthcare, parking and urban experience as new logistics domains

Three companies illustrate that the combination of mobility and logistics extends beyond the traditional transport and freight sector. Dalco Robotics, based in Delft, builds self-driving robots that take over routine logistical tasks in healthcare settings, such as delivering materials. SpecifAi Parkingfounded in 2024 in Valkenburg, uses real-time data and predictive models for parking management, a sector being reshaped by urban pressure and the shift to electric vehicles.

Maps Untold, based in Eindhoven and founded in 2021, targets hotel guests with personalised city guides. The software is already active in Tilburg, Ede, The Hague and Kampen, in collaboration with local city marketing organisations. The business model combines anonymised data for the tourism industry with ticket sales through the platform. GeniusTravel, based in Amstelveen and founded in 2014, uses an app to compile complete travel packages based on preferences and budget. In early 2025, the company raised €2 million from anonymous investors, earmarked for a rollout in the Netherlands and later other European markets.

What these companies share is that they operate in sectors where inefficiency is visible and measurable: an aircraft that spends too long at the gate, a truck that is not charged in time, a parcel that is sorted incorrectly. This makes it easier for investors to assess the business case and for customers to calculate the payback period. For the Dutch ecosystem, traditionally strong in ports, aviation and transport, this represents a familiar home market that can simultaneously serve as a reference for international expansion.