In this episode of The Procurement Software Podcast, James Meads is joined by Gregory Vider and Markus Sinz, co-founders of apadua, recorded live at their Indirect Procurement Days event near Frankfurt, Germany.

Drawing on their backgrounds as procurement practitioners and founders, Gregory and Markus share a grounded, thoughtful perspective on what AI really means for procurement. Rather than hype or job-replacement narratives, the discussion focuses on AI as an enabler that amplifies human capability, improves decision-making, and removes low-value administrative work.

The conversation explores apadua’s journey from a conventional sourcing platform to rebuilding an AI-native product from scratch, driven by deep user research rather than surface-level feature injection. James and the apadua team unpack why “human in the loop” remains critical, how procurement roles may shift towards more generalist and strategic profiles, and why differentiation in an AI-first world will come from people, not models.

Also discussed in this episode:

1. How to tell real AI capability from marketing noise
2. Why procurement adoption of AI will be gradual, not sudden
3. The future size and shape of procurement teams
4. Why apadua pursued ISO 27001 and what buyers should ask about cybersecurity

A reflective, pragmatic conversation on the future of procurement in an AI-enabled world.

[00:00] Podcast introduction and episode setup

[01:05] Final episode of 2025 and IPD event context

[02:45] Introduction to Gregory Vider and Markus Sinz from apadua

[03:20] Why AI creates confusion in procurement teams

[04:25] How to tell real AI capability from marketing hype

[05:45] AI as an enabler, human-in-the-loop vs automation

[12:15] Rebuilding apadua as an AI-native procurement platform

[15:50] How AI will reshape procurement roles and skill sets

[27:40] The future size and structure of procurement teams

[33:00] Cybersecurity, ISO 27001, and what buyers should ask

And that wraps up another episode of The Procurement Software Podcast!

Thanks again for listening, and do please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or rate us on Spotify. Every one helps!

We'll be back at the same time next month, so see you there.

If you want to learn more about Procurement Software, check out the useful links below.

1. Connect with Gregory Vider on LinkedIn and Markus Sinz on LinkedIn
2. Check out apadua
3. Download our Tech Map for Enterprise
4. Download our Tech Map for Mid-Market
5. Download our Tech Map for SMEs
6. Find your perfect procurement tech solution in our Software Finder app
7. Sign up for the Entproc Newsletter
8. Book an Intro Call and let’s talk all things Digital Procurement!
9. Connect with James on LinkedIn