From Data to Decisions: Smarter Procurement with the Right AI Platform

Artificial intelligence in public procurement is no longer a novelty, it’s part of everyday operations for many suppliers and procurement professionals. Over the past year, AI has matured from experimental add-ons to integrated capabilities that quietly shape how we find, assess, and respond to opportunities.

The real conversation today isn’t about whether AI should be used. It’s about making sure it’s used effectively, transparently, and in ways that support better bidding outcomes. With nearly every platform claiming to be “AI-powered,” the challenge for suppliers is cutting through the noise and identifying the features and the data that truly matter.

At Mercell, we’ve built our AI capabilities directly into a unified tendering and bidding platform, supported by one of the most extensive procurement datasets in Europe, giving our customers a level of relevance, transparency, and market reach that generic AI tools simply can’t match.

 

The AI Saturation Challenge

Because AI is now common in bidding platforms, it’s easy to assume all solutions are the same. They’re not. Some systems have been carefully trained on procurement-specific data and embedded into workflows that save you time. Others are more like generic tools adapted for procurement, often with limited depth or relevance.

Mercell’s AI is different because it’s fuelled by the largest consolidated tender dataset across both above- and below-threshold opportunities in Europe. And our three current AI capabilities — Better Tender Matching, Tender Summarisation, and our AI-powered Profile Builder — are all designed with one focus: saving you time, giving you more relevant tenders, and helping you optimise your monitoring profile yourself.

 

Core Qualities of a Modern AI-Driven Bidding Platform

 

1. Relevance Over Volume

An AI that returns hundreds of opportunities may look impressive, but quantity isn’t the same as quality. Mature AI in procurement focuses on relevance, surfacing tenders that fit your expertise, capacity, and market, and filtering out the rest.

Mercell’s Better Tender Matching capability uses procurement-specific AI models to go beyond keyword matching. It analyses the full context of tenders and your profile to deliver opportunities that align precisely with your strengths, reducing noise and helping you focus on high-potential bids.

This is further strengthened by our data enrichment initiatives. Every year, we enhance thousands of tenders with additional and corrected information, such as accurate CPV codes and other relevant data points. The more precise and complete the tender information, the better it can match supplier profiles. By enriching tender data at scale, we make sure our customers never miss an opportunity simply because key details were missing or misclassified.

 

2. Transparency You Can Trust

With AI becoming standard, transparency is now a major differentiator. You should be able to see why a tender was recommended (the specific criteria or patterns it matched) so you can validate and trust the results.

In Mercell, every recommendation is explainable. You see the match logic and underlying data, giving you confidence in both the results and the process which is a must in regulated public procurement environments.

 

3. Procurement-Specific Training

The most effective AI models in this space are trained on procurement-specific data. They understand the language of tenders, the nuances of requirements, and the legal frameworks that govern public procurement.

Mercell’s Tender Summarisation capability is a clear example. Because we have access to a vast volume of tender documents, far beyond what many others can work with, our AI can be trained on real, diverse, and high-quality procurement data. This allows us to generate highly accurate summaries that capture exactly what suppliers need to know.

The result is concise, easy-to-read summaries that highlight the essentials such as requirements, deadlines, key terms, without losing critical details. This level of precision is only possible when the models are built on the language, structure, and context of real-world procurement documents.

 

4. Responsible Data Practices

By now, most suppliers know the importance of responsible data usage, but not all platforms approach it the same way. Look for a provider that is transparent about where their data comes from, how it’s processed, and how privacy and bias are managed.

Mercell’s platform is designed for compliance. We adhere to EU public procurement regulations, safeguard sensitive information, and maintain clear governance around how AI models are trained and applied. 

 

5. Seamless Workflow Integration

AI works best when it’s embedded into the bidding process from end to end — discovery, qualification, preparation — without forcing you to change your established workflow.

Mercell’s AI-powered Profile Builder is a good example. It guides you through setting up or refining your supplier profile, automatically learning from your preferences and projects to improve future recommendations. This means your tender matches get better over time without you having to manually adjust settings, all within the same platform..

The Supplier’s Checklist for Evaluating AI Platforms

When AI is no longer a differentiator in itself, the evaluation criteria shift. Here’s a quick checklist to apply when choosing a bidding platform:

Relevance over raw quantity: Does the AI prioritise tenders that actually match your profile?
Mercell advantage: Better Tender Matching ensures accuracy and context-based results.

Transparent reasoning: Can you see why a tender is recommended?
Mercell advantage: Clear match explanations and criteria visibility.

Procurement-specific training: Is the AI built on procurement data, not just general web content?
Mercell advantage: Tender Summarisation designed for procurement language and requirements.

Responsible data handling:  Are privacy, compliance, and bias controls built in?
Mercell advantage: EU-compliant processes with proactive compliance monitoring.

Seamless integration: Does the AI fit into your process without creating extra steps?
Mercell advantage: AI-powered Profile Builder continually optimises recommendations in-platform.

 

AI is a Strategic Partner, Not a Selling Point

In 2025, AI in procurement is about making a measurable impact. The best AI quietly accelerates the work you already do, helping you focus on strategic, high-value activities while removing time spent on administrative search and screening tasks.

The question isn’t whether your bidding platform uses AI, it’s whether it uses AI well. With Mercell, that means AI is fuelled by the right data, embedded in the right workflows, and backed by the right expertise to make a measurable difference in your results.

Final thought: In a space where AI has moved from novelty to necessity, your competitive edge lies in how you choose and use it. Mercell’s combination of market-leading data coverage, procurement-specific AI capabilities, from Better Tender Matching to Tender Summarisation to the AI-powered Profile Builder, gives you a foundation for sustainable bidding success. It’s not just about having AI,  it’s about having AI that works for you.