June 30, 2021 – Elop’s AI business unit Simplifai has entered into a strategic partnership agreement
with Data Matters B.V. The latter is a leading specialist of information management and digital
archiving solutions and consultancy to local government across The Netherlands, including
Amsterdam, Schiedam and Hilversum municipalities.
As part of the agreement, Data Matters will include Simplifai’s AI-driven "Digital Employees” in its
offering to support the public sector facilitating intelligent automation of document management
and archiving processes.
A new law in The Netherlands addressing requirements for the access to and publication of
documents from public organisations to the citizens takes effect on January 1, 2022. This law, the
“WOO” (Wet Open Overheid) will have a significant effect on the workload of civil servants, including
large amounts of repetitive routine work which can be automated by a digital employee of Simplifai.
This represents a key driver behind the market opportunity and cooperation between Simplifai and
Data Matters. Overall, a digital employee can be used for any repetitive routine work from
information management to digital archiving.
“The demand for intelligent automation of information management and digital archiving processes
is growing rapidly. This is a major opportunity for us to help our clients speeding up their
compliancy, increasing efficiency and reducing costs” says Paul Schindeler, CEO at Data Matters.
Market opportunities
The cooperation between Data Matters and Simplifai is regulated through a 36-months rolling
agreement. Each new client project that Data Matters enters into under the agreement, will generate
monthly recurring revenues for Simplifai.
“Intelligent Automation Solutions are serving important governmental institutions in the Nordics
already. We see a huge potential for our solutions in public sector in Europe, and the Netherlands is a
great gateway to central Europe. Data Matters is in a perfect position to unlock this key customer
segment in the Netherlands.” says Bård Myrstad, VP of Simplifai.
Public sector growth strategy
Entering into the agreement with Data Matters is part of Simplifai’s strategy to grow revenues from
local, regional and central public sector clients in The Netherlands, as a continuation of the
Norwegian Public sector focus.
In February, Simplifai signed a breakthrough public sector agreement with National Archives Services
of Norway which has generated several requests from Norwegian municipalities and other
governmental bodies.
For further information, please contact:
Media
Bård Myrstad, VP Simplifai, tel: +47 415 03 263
Øivind Horpestad, Executive Chairman of Elop, tel: +47 910 00 626
Investors
Kim Bomann CFO of Elop, tel: +47 959 63 912
Data Matters
Paul Schindeler, CEO, tel: +31-20-6452393 E-mail:
info@datamatters.nl
About Elop AS
Elop is a Norwegian technology company that has developed tools and digital solutions to inspect,
monitor and manage infrastructure worldwide. The company’s technology portfolio includes a
patented ultrasound technology for inspection and analysis of critical infrastructure. Through datadriven and AI-based solutions for inspection and predictive maintenance of concrete infrastructure,
Elop’s vision is to provide asset owners with solutions that improve safety, extend asset lifetime,
minimise total lifecycle cost and environmental footprint. Elop is headquartered in Norway. For more
information:
www.elop.no
About Simplifai
Simplifai is Elop’s AI business unit. It supports Elop with developing data-driven and AI-based
solutions for inspection and monitoring of critical infrastructure. Simplifai operates as a stand-alone
business where it develops automation solutions using artificial intelligence to help clients across
numerous industry sectors to grow effeciently. For example, Simplifai’s Digital Employee solutions
can automate labour intensive work process where natural language communication including email,
chat or documents are central. This includes customer relations, case handling, HR and accounting.
Simplifai was acquired by Elop in January 2021. For more information:
www.simplifai.ai
About Data Matters
Data Matters designs, delivers and supports sustainable archiving solutions and services with an
integrated management for paper-based archives and digital preservation, including a (cloud) digital
repository with all the functions defined in the OAIS model. These solutions and services are based
on years of expertise, in-depth multi-disciplinary knowledge, and industry-leading products and
services from select innovative and reliable technology manufacturers. Data Matters has long-standing partnerships with Hitachi Vantara, Star Storage, and others. For more information:
www.datamatters.nl