Matt Ovenden, founder, The Wine Engine

In the cool hush of a candlelit cellar bar just a cork’s throw from London Bridge, a crowd of investors, wine lovers and curious techies swirl glasses and share quiet excitement.

They’re here for the launch of a bold new take on wine buying — one that brings together a digital sommelier, machine learning, and a cellar of wines sourced from all over the globe.

The Wine Engine is a new subscription service built to help people discover wine they’ll enjoy drinking — without the guesswork, confusion, or dreaded monthly wine club-delivered box of “meh”.

The AI sommelier can recommend wine

It’s the brainchild of Matt Ovenden, a serial entrepreneur whose previous start-up, Borrow a Boat — dubbed the Airbnb of yachting — scaled to 400,000 users across 60,000 boats and is currently in the process of being sold.

Now he’s turned his attention from sailing to sipping, launching a platform that he hopes will disrupt an industry still steeped in tradition.

We caught up with Ovenden over a strong coffee (ok, and a cheeky glass of Brazilian white) to talk about algorithms, authenticity, and how Stalin and astronauts helped inspire the wine list.

What was the inspiration for Wine Engine?

I’d just stepped back from Borrow a Boat after eight years of building and scaling it. That was my fourth business — and I just can’t sit still. I knew I wanted to build something new, and I found myself thinking a lot about wine. I enjoy it, but I also noticed how often people — including me — feel totally lost when buying it.

There’s too much choice, not enough information, and lots of judgment if you don’t “speak wine”. I wanted to fix that.

How does The Wine Engine platform actually work?

At its core, it’s a modern wine subscription and online shop — but we use AI to tailor everything to your taste. It’s built for people who want to explore wine but don’t have time to become experts. You can take a quick quiz, use our AI sommelier, and start getting personalised recommendations.

We’re trying to take the stress and pretension out of wine and make it accessible, exciting and — crucially — enjoyable.

Sounds good. But don’t wine clubs already exist?

They do — but most of them are built around their taste, not yours. Research shows 63% of subscribers don’t like the wines they receive, and half quit because they keep getting bottles they didn’t want. I’ve been a member of four or five myself and left them all for exactly that reason.

There’s nothing worse than having a dozen dusty bottles sitting around that you’ll never drink.

The Wine Engine is different. We’re not here to ship you the same pre-selected case every month. Our AI learns what you enjoy — and it adapts. It won’t just send rosé because you once bought a rosé.

Why build your own bot?

We’ve created something called GrapevineAI, which we’ve been developing for a few months now. It’s powered by OpenAI,  but trained specifically on wine — including 600+ bottles that are on or will be added to our site.

Unlike generic chatbots, it can tell you tasting notes, suggest food pairings, and — over time — build a profile of what you like. It’s your digital sommelier. You can ask it anything — even the “stupid” questions you might be too embarrassed to say out loud in a wine shop.

It’s the Spotify or Netflix model: the more you interact, the better the recommendations get.

And what’s on the wine list?

We’ve got over 100 South African wines — one of our strongest ranges — plus a brilliant collection of English wines, including sparkling, which is getting world-class reviews.

We also feature wines from Georgia, where they’ve been making wine for 8,000 years. One of the reds we offer was reportedly Stalin’s favourite and has even made it into the hands of Russian astronauts. There’s Brazilian sparkling — surprisingly good — Italian craft wines, Australian reds, and some of the best non-alcoholic wines I’ve ever tasted, from Wednesday’s Domaine.

Any plans for a Wine Engine mobile app?

That’s coming but right now it’s desktop only — we launched just two weeks ago. Now we’re only operating in the UK, because shipping wine internationally is… challenging. Maybe down the line we’ll go global.

You have the potential to collect some interesting data. Are you planning to monetise that?

No, not in the way big tech does. It’s purely for personalisation. We want people to get better recommendations. We might do partnerships or affiliate links later — pairing with recipes, for example — but we’re not here to sell your data.

What about the business model?

It’s subscription-first, but totally flexible. You can skip months, cancel easily, or just buy individual bottles. The aim is to build a loyal, engaged community — not trap people in.

Tonight’s tasting is part of that — it’s our first test of an in-person wine club model. If people enjoy it, we’ll do more events around the country, bringing in growers and unique wines.

There’s a growing trend for drinking less — does that worry you?

Not really. The trend is shifting to better, not more. Quality over quantity. That’s exactly what we’re about. And we’ve invested in great non-alcoholic options too — including a full-bodied red that’ll surprise you.

Has the wine industry embraced AI?

Not yet. It’s still quite traditional, and AI’s only just starting to break into mature sectors like this one and boating. But that’s the opportunity. As a tech outsider, I can innovate where incumbents might hesitate.

Biggest challenge in your start-up journey so far?

At Borrow a Boat I built a big team and raised a lot of money through crowdfunding — we ended up with 90 staff. It was an amazing ride, but with The Wine Engine, I’m keeping things lean. More tech, tighter focus, smaller team.

How do you switch off?

I’ve got four kids under 14 — they’re all learning to sail, which keeps us busy. And when the house is quiet, we enjoy a good glass of wine.

Of course! What’s your wine tip for the summer?

English wines. We’ve got nearly 50 on the platform. They’re some of the most underrated in the world right now — particularly the rosés and sparkling. And if you want to be adventurous, try the Brazilian fizz. It’s a crowd-pleaser.

And your coffee order?

Freshly ground, always. I grind my own beans at home.