FABBS wins AI Pitch Competition with second-life battery solution
Startup Flexible AI-Based Battery Systems - FABBS - turns EV batteries into smart AI-driven energy storage systems for homes and business.
Published on November 14, 2025
AI Pitch Competition 2025
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The winner of this year’s AI Pitch Competition has been announced: FABBS, a startup giving worn-out electric vehicle batteries a smart and sustainable second life. With its AI-powered technology, FABBS impressed both the jury and the audience at the finals in Eindhoven.
The competition, organized as part of the AI Summit Brainport, brought together eight of the Netherlands’ most promising AI startups, each pitching innovative solutions to pressing societal challenges, from health and finance to climate and energy. Jury chair Martin van Gruijthuijsen, Regional Minister for Economic Affairs in the Province of North Brabant, emphasized before the event that supporting such initiatives is about much more than prize money.
Watch all pitches here
“We are famous for collaborating and looking for answers to our societal challenges,” Van Gruijthuijsen said. “AI is one of the most powerful tools we have to tackle them, and this competition shows the energy and creativity that our startups bring to the table. We want to give those ideas a chance to grow.”
FABBS, short for Flexible AI-Based Battery Systems, stood out for its combination of AI, circularity, and real-world impact. The company uses artificial intelligence to monitor, reconfigure, and extend the life of used EV batteries, transforming them into affordable stationary storage systems. These systems help households and businesses balance their energy use and integrate renewables like solar and wind.
As FABBS CEO Justin van den Hurk explained during his pitch, “We are giving batteries a second life - and the planet a second chance.” The startup’s approach allows customers to cut energy costs by up to 30%, while reducing the environmental footprint of lithium battery production.
The jury praised FABBS for its clear business model, strong technological foundation, and the way AI is embedded into the product. “FABBS shows what responsible AI innovation looks like,” Van Gruijthuijsen said after the award ceremony. “It’s smart, it’s scalable, and it directly contributes to a more sustainable society.”
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Besides recognition and support from the region’s innovation ecosystem, FABBS receives €50,000 in cash to accelerate its growth.
For Van Gruijthuijsen, the event also highlighted Brainport’s unique collaborative culture. “We don’t just want to talk about innovation, we make it happen,” he said. “That’s why we support competitions like this one. They bring together talent, ambition, and purpose, and that’s exactly what our future needs.”
With its win, FABBS joins a growing list of Brainport-born companies turning AI into meaningful impact - proving that artificial intelligence, when done right, can indeed power a cleaner, fairer future.