App for patients and healthcare logistics robot win National Healthcare Innovation Award
At the Zorg & ICT event, Ditto and Ambyon were announced as the winners of the National Healthcare Innovation Award, an initiative of Zorginnovatie.nl and sponsored by ING. Ditto, an app that helps patients better understand their medical consultations, received the expert jury prize of €10,000, whilst Ambyon’s healthcare logistics robot won the public prize of €5,000 after receiving the most votes. The prizes were presented by Jet Bussemaker, chair of the Council for Public Health and Society.
Expert Jury Prize for Ditto: greater control over medical information
The expert jury awarded the prize to Ditto in recognition of its direct contribution to improving patients’ understanding of and adherence to their care, as well as preventing unnecessary repetition for healthcare providers. Ditto addresses a common problem: after a consultation, patients often remember only a fraction of the information discussed. With the Ditto app, patients can easily record their conversation with the healthcare provider using their own phone, regardless of their healthcare provider. The consultation is then converted into an easy-to-understand summary within minutes using Dutch AI. The app rephrases the conversation at the appropriate language level and translates it into other languages if required. The summary can then be securely shared with loved ones, without centralised data storage.
The jury consisted of Jan Willem Spijkman (ING), Iris van Bemmel (FME), Arianne van Lavieren (Zilveren Kruis), Sophie Brühl (Buurtdokters) and Gabriel Costa (J58). Jury chair Spijkman describes the innovation as compelling:“Ditto tackles a fundamental bottleneck in healthcare. The solution is accessible, scalable and has a clear societal impact because it takes the pressure off both patients and healthcare providers. The strong patient value, user-friendliness and clear vision on privacy and European positioning make this a compelling winner.”
Tobias Polak, one of Ditto’s founders, responds: “This award feels like recognition for a true team effort. Whilst others were initially sceptical, we have always remained focused on one thing: the patient comes first. By building on what patients need and want, we have been able to create something that really works and is scalable. The 80,000 downloads in just six months demonstrate that. But ultimately, it is the feedback from patients that motivates us; that is what keeps you going, even when things get tough.”
Public Choice Award for Ambyon: smart logistics in healthcare
The €5,000 Public Choice Award went to Ambyon for their healthcare logistics robot Ambyon ONE. This robot supports healthcare professionals in carrying out logistical tasks, such as transporting medication, food, medical supplies and lab samples. By taking over these tasks, more time is freed up for direct patient care. This leads to higher quality of care, greater job satisfaction and more efficient deployment of staff. At the same time, the use of the robot helps to reduce the pressure on the healthcare sector, where staff shortages are a growing challenge.
Founder Willem-Jan Lamers responded gratefully: “We feel hugely honoured by this recognition from the public and everyone who voted for us. In the coming period, we will continue to build and develop further in collaboration with new hospitals, and we look forward to working with even more partners.”
ING report: fragmentation in digital healthcare
Prior to the award ceremony, Jet Bussemaker and Jan Willem Spijkman (ING) delivered a keynote speech on the future of healthcare. During this session, they highlighted the importance of a single digital gateway for all healthcare portals in the Netherlands. ING presented a new report on this topic, which highlights, among other things, how the Netherlands is a European leader when it comes to investment in healthcare ICT, but that we are lagging behind in actual digitalisation due to a lack of coherence and standardisation. The insights from this report underline the importance of initiatives such as the National Healthcare Innovation Award.
About the National Healthcare Innovation Award
Successfully scaling up healthcare innovations into daily practice is a challenge for many healthcare entrepreneurs. To support these entrepreneurs, Zorginnovatie.nl will present the National Healthcare Innovation Award for the eleventh time in 2026, recognising the most innovative healthcare innovation in the scaling-up phase. Entrants stand a chance of winning the expert jury prize worth €10,000 and the public prize worth €5,000. In addition, they will receive guidance on the further development of their innovation. The National Healthcare Innovation Award is sponsored by ING.