Who is Jantine Doornbos? Meet the Dutch entrepreneur building an alternative to ChatGPT
Who is Jantine Doornbos? Discover the Dutch entrepreneur behind Loes AI, HostYourAI and her ambition to build European AI technology.
Jantine Doornbos is a Dutch technology entrepreneur developing a European alternative to American artificial intelligence services. The 34-year-old software developer from Groningen founded HostYourAI, the company behind Loes, a Dutch-language AI assistant designed to give users greater control over their data and technology.
Her ambitions have attracted national media attention, thousands of registrations and investment from European backers. But Doornbos is interested in more than developing another chatbot, with plans to strengthen Europe's ability to build and operate its own AI systems.
Who is Jantine Doornbos?
Jantine Doornbos is a software developer and the founder and CEO of HostYourAI, a technology company based in Groningen, the Netherlands. The business provides European AI hosting infrastructure, allowing organisations to run open models without depending entirely on American cloud platforms.
Her work focuses on AI sovereignty, giving companies more control over where their data is processed and which technologies they use.
Why did Jantine Doornbos create Loes AI?
The idea was partly inspired by an experience during a holiday in Italy, when Doornbos found that an AI model she used for software development was no longer accessible.
The incident highlighted the risks of depending on foreign technology providers. She subsequently developed Loes, a Dutch-language AI assistant built using adapted open models and hosted on European infrastructure.
How successful is HostYourAI?
Loes attracted considerable attention in 2026, especially following coverage by RTL Nieuws. According to reports, thousands of people registered to try the service after the television feature.
In September 2026, HostYourAI announced its first external funding round, led by Volta Ventures, with Pamica and JK INVEST also participating. The investment will support the company's technology, team expansion and European growth.
Is Loes AI as powerful as ChatGPT?
Loes offers an alternative focused on Dutch-language support and European data processing. However, there is no comprehensive independent evidence establishing that it matches ChatGPT across every task.
Doornbos has also introduced Baby Loes, an experimental Dutch-language model trained from scratch in the Netherlands. While it does not match the capabilities of the largest AI systems, the project demonstrates her ambition to develop European AI technology rather than relying solely on existing international models.
