ROTTERDAM, Netherlands — Sept. 3, 2026 — aNewSpring, the learning platform for professional training, has acquired TrainTool, the platform for practicing communication skills through video roleplay. Both companies are based in the Netherlands. The transaction was completed July 30, 2026. Together, the two companies form a group of around 65 people with customers on every continent.
Three Parts, One System
aNewSpring offers organizations one platform to design and run learning journeys, combining online content with classroom sessions, coaching and on-the-job practice. Its Training Optimization service measures what a training program actually changes: it sets a baseline, tracks progress against it and reports on the outcome rather than on course completion.
TrainTool adds practice. Learners respond on video to a realistic scenario, then get feedback from a peer, an instructor or an AI coach, as often as they need. Closing the gap between teaching a skill and showing it has been performed is why the two companies have come together.
“Knowledge has stopped being the scarce commodity. The ability to apply it is what organizations are short of,” said Dennis Valkema, CEO of the aNewSpring group. “aNewSpring brings the learning journey and the evidence that it works. TrainTool brings the practice that turns it into lasting skill. Very few companies offer both, and that is exactly where we intend to lead.”
One Group, One Step at a Time
TrainTool is now part of the aNewSpring group. In the course of 2027, TrainTool and aNewSpring will grow together, step by step, and start operating as one organization.
“Being part of aNewSpring lets TrainTool reach far more customers,” said co-founder Marijn de Geus. “Video roleplay becomes available to aNewSpring customers inside their own learning journeys, and TrainTool customers can extend into the possibilities of the aNewSpring platform. The ambition on both sides was always the same. Now there is the scale to act on it.”
A First Step, Not the Last
The aNewSpring group works to a long-term strategy of building, acquiring and partnering. TrainTool is its first acquisition.
“We build what we can build best ourselves, we bring in companies that add something we don’t have, and we partner where that serves customers better,” said Dennis Valkema. “TrainTool is the first step and there will be more, at a pace that lets us get each one right. It’s a marathon, not a sprint.”
Financial terms of the transaction have not been disclosed.
About aNewSpring
Founded in 2003 and headquartered in Rotterdam, aNewSpring is a learning platform for training providers, customer training teams and corporate learning departments. The company works from several offices in the Netherlands and from North Macedonia, Turkey and Albania, and serves customers on every continent.
More information: anewspring.com
About TrainTool
Founded in 2012 and based in Utrecht, TrainTool is a platform for practicing communication skills through video roleplay. Users respond to a realistic video scenario, then review their own recording and receive feedback. TrainTool serves customers in higher education as well as organizations that train and assess job-related communication.
More information: traintool.com
