About Us

Hidde: The idea for PinterPal was born out of a last-minute Christmas scramble. In December 2023, I found myself running out of time to find a gift for my mom. I had a general idea of what she liked and what she might use — but no clear direction, and she hadn’t given any hints. That’s when it hit me: why isn’t there a bot that guides you through a webshop and helps you discover the perfect gift? Not just random suggestions, but a smart, interactive assistant that narrows things down based on your needs. The more I thought about it, the more I realized — this should exist. That moment became the spark for PinterPal, and I knew I had to turn the idea into something real. But then I started thinking... why stop at gifts? What if the same kind of assistant could help you choose and arrange a vacation, recommend a good movie to watch, help you pick the perfect bottle of wine for a party, the possibilities are alsmost endless. The potential of this concept went far beyond just shopping — and that’s when the idea really started to grow.

Our Journey

Founded in February 2024 - august 2025 in The Hague, Netherlands, our journey to build this bot took over a year. From the start, we knew that working with AI would be challenging due to its relatively new and complex nature. However, we were inspired by the incredible potential AI offers to improve people's lives. This shared vision brought Hidde and Neo together. Although we attended the same high school, we had never spoken until we joined forces for this project. Our cooperation operates under the name DTI, which stands for Davids, Troenopawiro Intelligence.

The past 1.5 year have gone by quickly and have taught us a great deal about AI. Several times a week, we worked on the bot in the evenings after school or work. Today, we have created a bot designed to support people in their online shopping journeys. The bot provides you with quick insights into webshops and their assortments and, most importantly, saves customers time by guiding them effectively to the products that best match their needs and preferences.

PinterPal Team

Hidde Davids

Founder & Director

I’m Hidde Davids from The Hague, with a degree in Commercial Economics. I started my career at an accounting-software firm and then moved into cybersecurity, where I sharpened my analytical skills. Outside of work, I enjoy target shooting and spending quality time with friends and family. People know me for being reliable, respectful, and committed. I prefer a quick phone call over email or messaging, and I draw a lot of inspiration from my father and grandfather. Sitting still on vacation isn’t my style—I’m always looking for the next opportunity to learn and grow.

Biggest fear: flying insects
Favorite animals: dog and duck
Biggest life lesson: you’re the maker of your own life
Favorite foods: teppanyaki / döner / chicken chicharon

Neo Troenopawiro

Founder & Head Developer

My name is Neo and I study at Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences. I’m the head programmer at PinterPal, which means I’m mainly responsible for writing and maintaining the code.

A few things about me:
I love gaming and binge-watching anime series.
My biggest fear is flying cockroaches
My favorite animal is the cat.
One of my biggest life lessons is that there are many roads to Rome—don’t give up if you hit a roadblock; just find another way to reach your goal.
My favorite foods are sushi and pasta.

Ayah

Nap Operations Lead

Hi, I’m Aya, I’m 10 years old and I love sleeping and getting attention. I’m originally from Hungary.

A few things about me:
My absolute favorite activities are sleeping and eating.
My biggest fear is going outside when it’s raining.
Favorite animal: The Pigeon. I love chasing them around.
When it comes to food, I enjoy almost everything… but cookies are the best.
My biggest life lesson? If you stare at someone long enough, you’ll always get what you want.

Dion Westeneng

Developer & Head of Security

Dion (26, Baarn) ships the front-end and guards our stack. ICT graduate with almost 5 years in the security domain — he makes PinterPal fast, safe, and smooth.

Loves: techno & house, the gym, a good party, and riding motorcycles.

Biggest fear: the day Pegassi stops making music.
Favorite animal: cat.
Biggest life lesson: always keep smiling.
Favorite foods: tapas.

Michaël Vogel

Sales

Hi, I'm Michaël, a young, sometimes overly enthusiastic guy who focuses on getting the most out of relationships.

My biggest fear is best described with a scene from Coach Carter: Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate, our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
My favorite animal is a dog because of its endless loyalty.
The biggest lesson I've learned so far is that no matter how fast a lie is, the truth will always catch up.
My favorite food has to be pizza, because you can do anything with it depending on what you're craving in the moment.