ABW is an initiative founded by the Amsterdam Business School (ABS), MIT and the tech company ORTEC. Through ABW, data and AI experts volunteer their expertise to jointly tackle humanity's most urgent challenges. The selected organisations will apply data science and artificial intelligence to various issues, including access to clean water, public health, sustainable humanitarian transport, education and democratic accountability. Over the next 14 weeks, they will collaborate with world-leading data and AI experts, who volunteer their expertise.

Each organisation receives around €120,000 worth of in-kind support, including expert guidance, training and access to proven analytical methods. The goal is that participants can continue using data and AI independently after the programme.

Selected organisations

The 5 organisations operate mainly in low- and middle-income countries:

• Amref Health Africa – improving access to clean water and primary healthcare through more efficient data-driven groundwater exploration.
• Fleet Forum – supporting cleaner and more efficient humanitarian transport in Lebanon, using shared, data-based mobility solutions.
• InfoNTD – supporting frontline healthcare workers and policy makers by strengthening diagnosis and treatment of neglected tropical diseases by improving access to knowledge with AI tools.
• Archivi.ng  – preserving  Nigeria’s history by digitising historical archives to improve access to information and strengthen democracy.
• Teach the World Foundation – expanding access to quality education by optimising learning pathways with data. The initiative delivers education programmes to underserved communities in Pakistan, Bangladesh, South Sudan, and Malawi.

Open source and scalable solutions

'A key strength of the Accelerator Program is the focus given to replicability and scalability,' says Britt van Veggel, a PhD researcher with the Amsterdam Business School's Business Analytics section and member of the Selection Committee. 'We aim for solutions to be open source so they can be adapted by other nonprofits facing similar challenges. All results will be shared, catalysing change on a wider scale.’

From research to real-world impact

ABW builds on the UvA’s expertise in data analytics and decision sciences. Earlier collaborations show the potential of this approach. In a previous project with The Ocean Cleanup, researchers from the UvA and London Business School helped develop models that cut both the clean-up timeline and projected costs by almost half. ABW connects academic research at the UvA with concrete societal challenges. It shows how analytics and AI can deliver real value far beyond the business domain.