Amsterdam Sets the Pace: A Powerful Start to the Procurement AI World

The Procurement AI World Tour made its debut in Amsterdam—and what a start it was!

From the historic halls of the InterContinental Amstel to the focused energy in the room, this invite-only experience was intentionally designed for depth over scale. With 25 senior procurement leaders joining us from across the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and beyond, the event felt more like a high-stakes think tank than a typical conference—and that’s exactly what we were aiming for.

The Room Where It Happened

I had the pleasure of connecting one-on-one with 21 brilliant procurement executives. Their insights, candid feedback, and future-focused curiosity made this event unforgettable.

We were honored to host an exceptional group of leaders—from Cargolux, Ahold Delhaize, SPIE, CRH, Perfetti Van Melle, Shell International, Air France-KLM, PVH, Benteler, Cargill, Bekaert, COTY, Trivium Packaging, Constantia Flexibles, Forbo, and others—who brought thoughtfulness, challenge, and enthusiasm to every discussion.

Adding a strategic lens to the dialogue, EY Partner Armijn Verweij delivered a compelling keynote grounded in the 2025 Global CPO Survey, offering data-driven insight into how the most successful CPOs are embracing an AI-first future.

What Made the Day Special

From the moment we kicked off, the focus was clear: move beyond buzzwords and dive into real, actionable conversations about the future of procurement powered by AI.

• Armijn Verweij’s EY Keynote explored how top CPOs are operationalizing AI—rethinking skills, restructuring teams, and reprioritizing investments to lead in a fast-changing landscape.
• Matthieu Tritz’s Customer Keynote from Cargolux was equally impactful. He offered a transparent and strategic view into Cargolux’s procurement transformation journey with Zycus—highlighting how they’ve tackled intake challenges, implemented real automation, and are preparing to unlock new value with Agentic AI. His session bridged vision with reality and gave attendees a practical roadmap for what success looks like.
• The Merlin Demo by Varun brought our technology to life—showcasing innovations like Intake Orchestration, Autonomous Negotiation Agents, and AppXtend capabilities. This wasn’t about theory—it was about solving real procurement pain points with ready-to-deploy AI.
• The Roundtable Workshop turned insight into interaction. Attendees collaborated on live scenarios—from eliminating intake friction to accelerating negotiations, building stronger business cases, and mitigating risk through AI.

What I Heard (And Loved)

Throughout the day, a few consistent sentiments echoed:

“It’s refreshing to have meaningful conversations in a small, focused setting.”
“Zycus is clearly ahead in intelligent intake and negotiation automation.”
“We’d like to explore this further in a custom session with our teams.”

Tangible Impact & Strategic Value

This wasn’t just a feel-good gathering—it delivered real momentum:

• Deep dive into the AI use cases of six enterprises
• Elevated recognition of Zycus’s AI-driven maturity and roadmap
• Validation from both customers and the analyst-consulting ecosystem

Most importantly, it set a new bar for how we engage. The tour isn’t about broadcasting—it’s about co-creating the future of procurement.

The Road Ahead

As I write this, we’re already preparing for our next stop: Frankfurt on July 3. If Amsterdam was about setting the foundation, Frankfurt will be about scaling the energy—with new voices, fresh perspectives, and even deeper conversations around unlocking deep value with AI.

To everyone who joined us in Amsterdam—thank you. Your presence and participation made this kickoff truly special.

The future of procurement is being shaped one stop at a time, and we’d love for you to be a part of it.

Let’s keep the momentum going.

Related reads –

1. CPO eProcurement Checklist for Belgium
2. 2025 Purchase-to-Pay (P2P) Trends & Insights: Key Challenges, Automation, and AI-Driven Strategies
3. Procurement Fails You’ll Recognize — and Fixes You’ll Want to Steal
4. GenAI Execution with Evolving Regulatory Landscape
5. Ardent Partners’ Procurement Metrics That Matter in 2025