Comparison updated August 2026
Side by side
Published data on both agencies. Where one side measurably differs, the dot marks it: the higher score, the lower published rate, the larger team, the more recent review. Which of those is an advantage depends on your brief.
| Attribute | DEPT | DEUS |
|---|---|---|
| Editorial score | 60.3/100 | 60.3/100 |
| Hourly rate | Contact for rates | Contact for rates |
| Team size | ||
| Location | Amsterdam, Netherlands | Amsterdam, Netherlands |
| Founded | 2016 | 2020 |
| Last reviewed | More recent review: Aug 6, 2026 | Aug 4, 2026 |
What we said about each
Our take on DEPT
Signs is the most visible AI work here: a sign-language learning platform using computer vision to check the learner's signing, which reached more than 20 million people in its first week and recorded 20,000 signs learned in ten days. It is a collaboration with NVIDIA and the American Society for Deaf Children rather than a commissioned client project, which is worth knowing when you read it as evidence. The commissioned AI work is more ordinary and more useful as a guide: a return-value…
Reviewed Aug 6, 2026
Read the full assessment →Our take on DEUS
The ABN AMRO work is the reason to look here: a voice AI system handling customer service calls autonomously, including caller identification, alongside a conversational search layer that merged the bank's help and search into one interface. Shell's global data marketplace is the platform counterpart—a data mesh with more than seventy new services created on it—and the RTL engagement produced an AI playbook that identified over fifty opportunities across departments. That range, from autonomous…
Reviewed Aug 4, 2026
Read the full assessment →Best for
Where each agency measurably leads on the published data — team capacity, declared specializations, editorial scoring, and rates where both publish them. Use these to match an agency to your project priorities.
Choose DEPT if you need
- disclosed specialization in SaaS & B2B
- broader service offering — also covers AI Marketing and Generative AI
Choose DEUS if you need
- disclosed specialization in FinTech / Manufacturing
- broader service offering — also covers AI Consulting and AI Agents
Strengths and watch-outs
Both upsides and risks, straight from our editorial assessments.
DEPT
Strengths
- Named clients with figures attached across three sectors: retail returns, clinical search, sports fan engagement
- Computer vision applied to genuinely hard interaction problems, not generative demos
- International delivery capacity, so multi-market rollouts do not need a second agency
Watch-outs
- Signs is collaborative work with NVIDIA, not a client engagement—judge the commissioned cases separately
- Published AI work is weighted toward audience-facing products—ask for an operated system with an SLA if that is what you need
- At this scale, insist on knowing the named team, not the agency's aggregate credentials
DEUS
Strengths
- Autonomous voice handling deployed inside a Dutch bank—among the highest-scrutiny environments for conversational AI
- Both ends of the problem are evidenced: the customer-facing system and the data platform beneath it
- Human-centered design is a stated method, and the published work reflects it rather than only claiming it
Watch-outs
- Founded 2020, so the track record is shorter than the client names suggest—ask who leads delivery
- Outcome figures appear on the platform work but not on the voice systems; ask for containment and escalation rates
Service coverage
Where the two overlap, and where each covers ground the other does not.
Industry coverage
Where the two overlap, and where each covers ground the other does not.
Frequently asked questions
- Which scores higher overall, DEPT or DEUS?
- Both score equally well overall (60.3/100). The deciding factor is specialization — see the editorial quotes and Strengths sections above. Full methodology.
- When should I consider both DEPT and DEUS?
- Consider running parallel discovery briefs with DEPT and DEUS if your project spans multiple workstreams, you want competitive proposals to compare scope and approach, or you're undecided between the specialization angles each brings (see the Best for cards above). Most engagements ultimately go with one — but the parallel-brief phase is a low-cost way to validate fit.
Read the full reviews
A side-by-side is a starting point. The full assessments carry the portfolio analysis, documented engagements, and the evidence behind every strength and watch-out above.