IMPROVE
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2022
- HeadquartersMünster, Germany
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What IMPROVE does
IMPROVE is an EU Horizon Europe-funded research consortium operating under Grant Agreement No. 101074010, focused on reducing domestic violence through the development of technological tools, training programs, and methodological frameworks. Launched in 2022 and concluded in October 2025, the project coordinated 17 partner organizations across 8 European countries and was legally hosted by European Research Services GmbH in Münster, Germany. The consortium spans police, social work, healthcare, legal, and academic stakeholders, positioning it as a multi-disciplinary intervention platform rather than a single-vendor product.
The project's core outputs include the AinoAid chatbot (a conversational AI support tool for domestic violence survivors, developed by Finnish partner We Encourage Oy Ltd and launched in Berlin in August 2024); a Training Platform targeting frontline professionals across sectors including law enforcement and the legal field; RAIMO, a structured risk assessment framework; a Checklist for Intervention; and the MICA method for multi-agency cooperation. The Training Platform and AinoAid chatbot are technically integrated with the broader VIPROM/IMPRODOVA platform ecosystem (VIMPRODO), creating interoperability with related EU-funded research infrastructure. AinoAid has reportedly been tested by over 30,000 users, providing a substantive real-world validation dataset.
IMPROVE operates on a non-commercial model. All deliverables are made freely available, and the sole source of funding is the Horizon Europe grant from the European Commission rather than user fees, licensing, or commercial sales. The project has received external recognition through the German Prevention Award 2026 and the European Security Innovation Award 2025. Because the project formally concluded in October 2025 and operates without a commercial monetization layer, this is best understood as a publicly-funded R&D program whose outputs are openly licensed rather than a commercial software company.
IMPROVE firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- IMPROVE
- Legal name
- European Research Services GmbH
- Website
- https://improve-horizon.eu
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2022
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
IMPROVE industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Domestic Violence Prevention Software
- NAICS
- Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172), Human Rights Organizations (813311), Educational Support Services (611710), Child and Youth Services (62411), Security Guards and Patrol Services (561612)
- SIC
- Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Computer Programming Services (7371)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Domestic Violence & Abuse Support Services (BPAGAEAD)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Threat Assessment, Violence Prevention & Behavioral Intervention Support (EDAEACAH), Alternative Dispute Resolution & Restorative Justice Programs (BPAIAFAL), Rule of Law, Justice & Corrections Support in Conflict Settings (BPADAFAI), Peace, Security Sector Reform & Stabilization Programs (BPADABAH)
Keywords
Where IMPROVE is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Münster
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices8 records
Markets served
IMPROVE business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- EU Research Grant (Horizon Europe): IMPROVE is funded by the European Union's Horizon Europe programme under Grant agreement ID: 101074010. This is a non-revenue-generating research and innovation project. All outputs (AinoAid chatbot, training platform, publications) are made freely available. The project concluded in 2025 but its impact continues through AinoAid and the training platform.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels9 records
IMPROVE product offering
Product offeringCore offering
IMPROVE is a European Union Horizon Europe research and innovation project (Grant No. 101074010) that develops tools to combat domestic violence. Its core offerings include the AinoAid AI-powered chatbot and knowledge bank for 24/7 victim/survivor support, the IMPROVE Training Platform with sector-specific modules for police, health, social, and legal professionals, and the MICA methodology for accelerating domestic violence policy implementation.
Product overview
IMPROVE (Improving Access to Services for Victims of Domestic Violence by Accelerating Change in Frontline Responder Organisations) is a Horizon Europe research and innovation project that offers two primary product lines: (1) AinoAid - an AI-powered 24/7 chatbot and knowledge bank for direct victim support, and (2) the IMPROVE Training Platform - a comprehensive e-learning platform with 9 modules per sector (police, health, social, legal) plus supplementary tools including RAIMO for risk assessment and the Checklist for Intervention. The project also produces publications, comics, and dissemination materials to combat domestic violence across Europe.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- AinoAid™: AI-powered chatbot and knowledge bank offering guidance, information, and assistance for people seeking help with close relationships, particularly domestic violence. Developed by We Encourage Oy Ltd as part of the IMPROVE project.
Products and services
- AinoAid Chatbot An AI-powered conversational chatbot and knowledge bank offering 24/7 accessible support for close relationships and domestic violence. It provides guidance, information on rights, and assistance to victims, survivors, and professionals seeking help with domestic violence situations.
- IMPROVE Training Platform A free online European training platform providing training materials on domestic violence for police, health sector, social sector, and legal sector professionals. Includes 9 detailed training modules per sector with teaching videos, case studies, and quizzes, available in 8 languages.
- RAIMO (Risk Assessment Integration Module) A modular tool presenting the four steps of the domestic violence risk assessment process from risk identification to follow-up. Familiarises users with risk factors, vulnerability factors, and multi-agency cooperation in risk management.
- Checklist for Intervention in Domestic Violence A practical intervention tool developed by Valencia's GAMA team to support law enforcement through every stage of domestic violence interventions, ensuring systematic, victim-centred response.
- MICA (Method for Identifying Change Accelerators) An analytical method to assess policy gaps and risks, developed by CNRS based on ISO guidelines on risk assessment and risk management. Identifies and maps policy gaps, reviews promising solutions, and prioritises areas with greatest potential for policy improvements.
Quantifiable outcome
- 30,000+ users engaged with AinoAid chatbot
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use IMPROVE
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
IMPROVE technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability5 records
Feature4 records
IMPROVE partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- VIPROM (Victim Protection in Medicine)minorVIPROM is a related EU project (2023-2026) developing curricula for medical practitioners on domestic violence. The IMPROVE training platform is part of the European training platforms VIMPRODO alongside IMPRODOVA and VIPROM, accessible via www.training.vimprodo.eu.
- Deutsche Hochschule der Polizei (DHPol) / German Police UniversitycoreDHPol serves as Work Package 6 Lead (Scientific coordination and project management) and is the project co-coordinator. As Germany's graduate tertiary education institution for senior police, DHPol provides scientific oversight ensuring all partners are aware of activities and take part in discussions on progress, problems, and planning.
- Yordas GmbH (YOR)coreYordas leads Work Package 5 (Dissemination, engagement and exploitation), responsible for developing and delivering effective communication, dissemination and exploitation strategies to ensure awareness, understanding and action across all stakeholder groups. Yordas is a leading international provider of scientific and regulatory services.
- Universidad De La Iglesia De Deusto (UDEUSTO)coreUniversidad Deusto serves as Work Package 4 Lead, focusing on enabling, improving and accelerating domestic violence policy implementation. Uses the MICA method to identify policy enablers and prioritise areas for policy change. Deusto has over 125 years of history and participates in many EC-funded research projects.
- Universität Münster / University of Münster (WWU)coreWWU is the third largest university in Germany. Their research group Cognition & Gender (Head: Prof. Dr. med. Dr. rer. nat. Bettina Pfleiderer) is associated with the Clinic of Radiology and specialises in sex and gender sensitive medicine and domestic violence. Contributes expertise on professional education and training for WP3.
- We Encourage Oy Ltd (WE)coreWe Encourage is a Finnish impact start-up leading the development of the AinoAid™ conversational AI chatbot in Work Package 2. They provide guidelines for structuring victim interviews, analyse conversational data, and make technical decisions regarding the chatbot platform, cloud base, machine learning model, and UX/UI design. AinoAid has received multiple awards including the German Prevention Award 2026.
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)coreCNRS is the largest governmental research organisation in France with 11,000+ tenured research scientists. CNRS developed the MICA method (Method for Identifying Change Accelerators) used in WP4 for policy gap assessment. CNRS also conducted research on the link between domestic violence and substance use on La Réunion.
- Police University College of Finland (Polamk)corePolamk is the only institute in Finland responsible for police training, recruitment, education, and further training, under the direction of the Ministry of the Interior. Located in Tampere, it contributes expertise on professional education and training for frontline responders.
- French Ministry of the Interior (MININT)coreThe French Ministry of the Interior brings together the national police (150,000 officers) and national gendarmerie (100,000 military officers). They contribute to WP3 on training and have published a handbook on combating domestic violence (2022) distributed to all police and gendarmerie units.
- Valencia Local Police (PLV)coreValencia Local Police is the sole local police force in Spain involved in the IMPROVE project. They hosted the International Symposium on New Approaches to Combat Domestic Violence (June 3, 2025) and developed the Checklist for Intervention tool. PLV received Spain's national Good Practices award for their IMPROVE contribution.
- IMPRODOVA (Improving Frontline Responses to High Impact Domestic Violence)minorIMPRODOVA (2018-2021) was a predecessor EU project that designed the original training platform for domestic violence. IMPROVE expands on this platform to better reflect European multicultural populations, diversity of victims, and multiple forms of violence. The training platform is jointly accessible at www.training.vimprodo.eu.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
IMPROVE competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- IMPRODOVA (Improving Frontline Responses to High Impact Domestic Violence): Direct predecessor EU-funded project (2018–2021) that built the original training platform for domestic violence frontline responders. IMPROVE explicitly expands on IMPRODOVA's training content to reflect European multicultural populations, and the two platforms are jointly hosted at training.vimprodo.eu — making them the closest direct peer.
- VIPROM (Victim Protection in Medicine): Related Horizon Europe project (2023–2026) developing curricula for medical practitioners on domestic violence. VIPROM, IMPROVE, and IMPRODOVA together constitute the VIMPRODO European training platform, making it a near-twin peer with overlapping scope in DV training.
- We Encourage Oy Ltd: Finnish impact startup that led the development of AinoAid™ within the IMPROVE consortium (Work Package 2) and holds the AinoAid trademark. Most directly comparable as the operational, commercial-style entity within the IMPROVE ecosystem that built and owns the chatbot technology.
Broad incumbents
- Refuge: UK's largest domestic violence charity operating the National Domestic Violence Helpline and providing tech-enabled support services including a website chat tool. Comparable as a large, established DV support organization with broader service portfolio than IMPROVE's specialist AI tooling.
- National Domestic Violence Hotline: US-based 24/7 DV support service operating phone, chat, and text channels with extensive digital tools. Comparable as an incumbent digital DV support service operating at significantly larger scale than AinoAid, focused on similar victim-survivor support outcomes.
Emerging players
- Wysa: AI chatbot for mental wellness and emotional support with NHS partnerships and B2B licensing to employers and health systems. Comparable as a peer in conversational AI for sensitive health and wellbeing conversations, with similar commercial model of licensing to institutions — analogous to AinoAid's potential post-project trajectory.
- Woebot Health: AI-powered conversational mental health chatbot company using NLP for therapeutic interactions. Comparable as a peer in the AI-chatbot-for-vulnerable-populations space, with similar technology stack (conversational AI, NLP) addressing adjacent mental health rather than DV-specific use case.
- Chayn: Global open-source nonprofit creating trauma-informed digital tools and resources for survivors of abuse and gender-based violence. Comparable as an emerging tech-forward DV support organization focused on survivor empowerment through digital channels — directly aligned with IMPROVE's mission.
Others
- WAVE (Women Against Violence Europe): European network of specialist women's NGOs working to end violence against women, coordinating policy advocacy and capacity building across 46 European countries. Comparable as an adjacent ecosystem participant that IMPROVE's policy acceleration work (MICA method, WP4) interacts with.
- Victim Support Europe: European umbrella organization representing victim support services across the EU, focused on victim rights policy implementation. Comparable as an adjacent policy and advocacy stakeholder in the same DV/victim-support ecosystem that IMPROVE's training and policy tools serve.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
IMPROVE social profiles
Digital presenceIMPROVE financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
IMPROVE leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
IMPROVE funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
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IMPROVE M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
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Frequently asked questions about IMPROVE
What does IMPROVE do?
IMPROVE is a European Union Horizon Europe research and innovation project (Grant No. 101074010) that develops tools to combat domestic violence. Its core offerings include the AinoAid AI-powered chatbot and knowledge bank for 24/7 victim/survivor support, the IMPROVE Training Platform with sector-specific modules for police, health, social, and legal professionals, and the MICA methodology for accelerating domestic violence policy implementation.
Is IMPROVE a public or private company?
IMPROVE is a private company. It is classified as state government owned and is currently operating.
When was IMPROVE founded?
IMPROVE was founded in 2022. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is IMPROVE based?
IMPROVE is headquartered in Münster, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does IMPROVE make money?
One revenue line is on record: EU Research Grant (Horizon Europe).
Who are IMPROVE's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are IMPRODOVA (Improving Frontline Responses to High Impact Domestic Violence), VIPROM (Victim Protection in Medicine) and We Encourage Oy Ltd. Broad incumbents are Refuge and National Domestic Violence Hotline. Emerging players are Wysa, Woebot Health and Chayn. Others are WAVE (Women Against Violence Europe) and Victim Support Europe.
Does IMPROVE have an API?
No public API is recorded for IMPROVE.
What industry is IMPROVE in?
IMPROVE's product category is Domestic Violence Prevention Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAEAD, Domestic Violence & Abuse Support Services, with a secondary code of EDAEACAH, Threat Assessment, Violence Prevention & Behavioral Intervention Support. Its NAICS code is 54172 and its SIC code is 8300.