A founder's farewell with Robert Monné

Analytics for a Better World (ABW) co-founder Robert Monné is stepping back from his role, marking the end of the organisation's founding chapter and the beginning of an exciting new one. Robert was essential to the successful ecosystem that ABW is today, contributing to the transformation of a bold idea into a thriving global community of 16 mission-driven organisations, 13 industry partners, and 10 academic institutions, united under the purpose of using analytics and AI equitably for good. Under his leadership, ABW co-created "impact that will outlast us all", as he put it — from halving the time and cost to clean the Pacific Garbage Patch to deploying open-source tools improving access to healthcare and education across multiple countries. In this farewell interview, Robert reflects on the vision that started it all, the lessons learned along the way, and the legacy he hopes ABW will carry forward. His passion for the mission remains as strong as ever, and his belief in what comes next is the greatest endorsement ABW could ask for.

What was the vision behind Analytics for a Better World when you co-founded it with the University of Amsterdam and ORTEC?

"The vision was actually quite simple. We believed that analytics and AI had already transformed the business world, but that their potential for social good was largely untapped. Mission-driven organisations are taking on some of the world's most complex challenges — food security, healthcare access, and climate resilience. However, when comparing their access to analytical expertise and tools between them and the private industry, we thought this gap was worth addressing for a better world.

Our idea was to build an ecosystem. Not sparse pro-bono projects, but a structural, sustainable connection between three sectors that each had something unique that could strengthen each other: mission-driven organisations with rich on-the-ground expertise for complex real-world challenges, universities with innovative research projects, and companies with implementation capacity and experience. Nobody was bringing those three together in a systematic way. We thought the impact could be substantial.

Personally, it combined everything I cared about: building something new, applying data science, and working for a better world. It felt like a dream job, and for a long time, it was."

What are some of the impact highlights you feel most proud of?

"There are so many, but a few stand out.

Those first exploratory meetings with founder Dick den Hertog, with high energy and aligned minds. Then, hiring our first team member, our previous CTO, Parvathy Krishnan, when I felt how she matched the same energy we started with and the belief in our mission. With just three people, we started building what we have now. The real-world impact of our projects and activities is obviously what it is all about, but I am also very proud of the organisation, the mission we shaped for ourselves, and the community we have managed to nurture.

The Ocean Cleanup collaboration is one I come back to often. Our optimised routing approach increased plastic collection by over 60%, and the CEO confirmed publicly that the Pacific Garbage Patch can now be cleaned in half the time and at half the cost — 5 years instead of 10, $4 billion instead of $7.5 billion. That's a result that will outlast all of us. Apart from the numbers, what stands out to me is the first meeting where it all started. We were in a room with the full ABW and Ocean Cleanup team, brainstorming about the challenge and the solution. That energy in that room was fantastic. I think we all felt we were onto something potentially very impactful and felt a deep match in capabilities. I think that project is the best example of the powerful combination of the three parties we bring together: mission-driven organisations, experts, researchers, and industry professionals.

The PISA toolkit is another. We built an open-source tool that enables governments and mission-driven organisations to make data-driven decisions about where to place hospitals, clinics, schools or any critical infrastructure for underserved communities. It is now being used across Vietnam, Nepal, Kenya, Sudan, Timor-Leste, and beyond. The fact that it is open source means the impact keeps compounding without us having to be in the room.

And then there is something quieter but just as meaningful. We have strengthened the capacity of many individuals in the mission-driven sector, and what makes me proud is that each individual is now creating impact within their organisation by applying analytics. Imagine the scalable impact that is now expanded. For example, a data scientist at AMREF Health Africa built a predictive model through our Fellowship that helped identify which donors were most likely to respond to fundraising mailings. It saved €100,000 a year. That is money now directly redirected into health programmes across Africa. Another fantastic fellow developed a crime monitor that is used in Nigeria to improve prevention programs. That is exactly what we set out to do: strengthen capacity inside organisations so they can take creating impact on their own to the next level.

What I am proudest of overall, though, is the community. What started as two founding partners has grown into 16 mission-driven organisations, 13 industry partners, and 10 academic institutions, all united around the same mission: “unlocking the potential of analytics for people who make the world a better place”. That network and joint efforts are the real proof that the idea works."

What inspiring lessons have you gained by nurturing Analytics for a Better World?

"The biggest one is that the connected ecosystem itself is the value. There are brilliant researchers, talented data scientists, and passionate mission-driven organization professionals everywhere. What is rare is the connection between them. Someone willing to sit in the middle, translate between worlds, and make sure that great research actually gets implemented, and that real problems get solved in the best way possible. That is ABW's superpower.

I also learned that mission, capability and people’s alignment consistently beat formal commitment. Our best partnerships were always defined by whether the people on both sides genuinely cared. Impact potential, passion, and a real click on mission outperform everything else.

One lesson I feel strongly about is the risk of what I would call the ivory tower trap — and its close cousin, data colonialism. It is easy for an organisation full of brilliant researchers and technically skilled consultants to develop solutions that are perfect in theory but do not work on the ground. And when highly skilled technical people engage with under-resourced organisations in low- and middle-income regions, there is a real risk of imposing solutions that reflect a skewed worldview rather than their lived reality. This can create dependency instead of capability, or inadvertently undermine local data science expertise that already exists. The antidote is genuine co-creation, local ownership, and humility. The best solutions are built with communities, not  for  them. That is something I had to learn, and something I think the field as a whole still needs to take more seriously.

And finally, perhaps the most personal lesson, the startup phase and the scale-up phase need very different skill sets and mindsets. In the early days, the best approach is to move fast, try things, learn quickly, and prove the concept's value. As an organisation matures, it needs focus, professionalisation, and structural funding. Recognising which phase you are in and being willing to adapt is crucial. Sometimes that means different leadership, too. I am proud to have recognised that moment, and very happy ABW’s mission continues with new leadership."

What kind of legacy do you hope Analytics for a Better World carries on in its future?

"I hope ABW stays true to what makes it unique: the nucleus of a connected ecosystem between academia, industry, and mission-driven organisations and the drive to co-create actual lasting impact and solutions (not delivering reports nobody really reads). The magic can truly be found in this combination, and I wish the team would hold onto that.

I also hope ABW keeps insisting on advanced, rigorous analytics, the kind of work that actually shifts outcomes for underserved communities. The world does not need more dashboards. It needs optimisation models that enable the World Food Programme to feed millions more people, routing algorithms that clean oceans faster, and placement tools that get healthcare to people who have been deprived of access. This is the work worth doing.

And I hope ABW stays vigilant about how it does that work — not just what it delivers. The risk of the ivory tower is real: solutions that look great on paper but were not built with the people who have to use them. The risk of data colonialism is real, too — technical expertise flowing in one direction, creating dependency rather than local capacity, or disrupting the local data science ecosystems that communities are trying to build themselves. The organisations that navigate this well are the ones that treat co-creation and local ownership not as nice-to-haves, but as non-negotiables. I would love ABW to be a standard-bearer for that.

What I wish for ABW most of all: that the organisation and mission keep growing beyond anything I could have imagined when we started. The foundations are solid — a proven track record, a focused strategy, a talented and dedicated team, and a growing global community. Ronald Lenz, Magdalena Aguilar, Dick den Hertog, Joaquim Gromicho, Britt van Veggel, Trang Luu, and Irina Ionita will bring their own ideas and energy, and that is exactly what is needed for the next step.

The concept works. The mission matters. I genuinely cannot wait to see how the team will keep contributing to a better world."