Startup Week Aachen Recap
After the STARTUP WEEK AACHEN, during which around 30 events in the field of entrepreneurship and innovation took place in Aachen from 22 to 27 May, the organizers draw a positive conclusion. A total of around 3,000 founders, investors, entrepreneurs, and those interested in starting their own business, last week took advantage of the opportunity to gather information, network, be inspired, and exchange experiences. The initiators of the second Aachen STARTUP WEEK were digitalHUB Aachen, RWTH Innovation, the Entrepreneurship Center of FH Aachen, TechVision Fund, AGIT, IHK, and the City of Aachen.
"The past week has once again shown how much the start-up scene is flourishing in the Aachen Area! Our event portfolio for STARTUP WEEK has almost doubled from 16 to 30 compared to last year, and the number of participants has increased by 50 percent. This shows that we are reaching more and more start-ups, investors, and aspiring entrepreneurs. Together in the strong Aachen ecosystem, we ignite a fireworks of innovations and thus decisively drive and shape the transformation towards sustainable business. I'm already looking forward to the next STARTUP WEEK AACHEN," says Dr. Oliver Grün, Chairman of the Board of digitalHUB Aachen e.V. and CEO of GRÜN Software Group.
"The second Startup Week Aachen was a complete success. The strong networking, close contact, and excellent collaboration in the Aachen ecosystem are important success factors for our startup location. Together with our partners, we have a clear path ahead and will continue to work to create the best possible conditions for founders," adds Iris Wilhelmi, Managing Director of digitalHUB Aachen e.V.
Highlights of STARTUP WEEK included the Kick-off Event on Monday, 22 May, at the digitalCHURCH with Startup Breakfast, Barcamp, and the official opening by Mayor Sibylle Keupen; the "Fuck Up Stories" event on 23 May; the Aachen Technology and Entrepreneurship Congress (ATEC) on 24 May at LIEBIG; the NRW Roadshow "Meet, Greet and Beat" by gründen.nrw on 26 May; and Deep Tech Momentum (24-27 May). With more than 1,500 participants, ATEC at Liebig was the largest event during STARTUP WEEK.
STARTUP WEEK AACHEN Kick-off Day
The STARTUP WEEK kicked off on 22 May with a shared breakfast, followed by the Barcamp "Cultivating the Startup Ecosystem of Tomorrow." Many participants stayed for the interactive Startup Pitch Game presented by founder Bilgehan Karatas. The highlight of the Kick-off Day was the presentation of the Barcamp results to Mayor Sibylle Keupen, who, along with the stakeholders in the Aachen startup ecosystem, aims to further improve conditions for founders. The subsequent panel discussion with the Mayor, digitalHUB Managing Director Iris Wilhelmi, Benjamin Menzel (Vice President Innovation at Babor Beauty Group), and Peter Frerichs (CEO of Inform GmbH) addressed these points and discussed existing initiatives and ideas for improvement.
F*ck Up Stories - Startup Edition
"Pflaster drauf, weiter geht's! (Patch it up and move on)" This is the motto of the event series "Fuck Up Stories," initiated by Quellpunkt, digitalHUB Aachen, the Central Student Advisory Service of RWTH Aachen, the Collective Incubator, AC.E, RWTH Innovation, and the Entrepreneurship Center of FH Aachen. The goal is to establish a culture of failure and make failure acceptable.
On 23 May, the event "Fuck Up Stories Aachen" took place as part of STARTUP WEEK AACHEN. Four great and inspiring speakers took the stage at the digitalCHURCH and shared their learnings: "Do not underestimate data protection and legal requirements and obstacles in your start-up, always be well-prepared for investor meetings so that you don't go into a defensive position, set fixed milestones in your product development, and: the life of a founder is a roller coaster ride," were some of the key learnings.
ATEC23
The ATEC, jointly organized by RWTH, Collective Incubator e.V., and digitalHUB Aachen e.V., has been attracting entrepreneurship enthusiasts for 13 years. This year's edition emphasized how much the community has grown since 2010: with more than 1,500 participants, 100 national and international start-ups, 30 top investors, and several leading corporate partners in Aachen, ATEC23 is not only the top event of STARTUP WEEK AACHEN but also the flagship for innovation in the tri-border region of Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
The event on 24 May started with a short quiz between moderator Dan Ram and host Prof. Dr. Malte Brettel. In addition to high-profile panel discussions on Deep Tech and Climate Tech, there were keynotes from prominent politician Peter Altmaier and Jodel founder Alessio Borgmeyer. More information about ATEC can be found in the press release from RWTH Innovation.
Roadshow MEET, GREET & BEAT
On 26 May, the NRW Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Protection, represented by State Secretary Paul Frederik Höller, was a guest at the digitalHUB during the roadshow. DigitalHUB Chairman Dr. Oliver Grün and tech influencer and entrepreneur Sophia Tran also attended as moderators. Five start-up teams that received the Gründerstipendium.NRW presented their ideas to a high-profile jury. The focus was on innovative entrepreneurial projects by grant recipients contributing to solving societal, i.e., social and ecological challenges. "RecyCoal" secured the first place and entry into the roadshow finale in Düsseldorf, while "upstair" received the second place and the Audience Award.
Deep Tech Momentum 23
During Deep Tech Momentum (24-27 May), 60 Deep Tech start-ups had the opportunity to pitch in front of investors Freigeist, Amadeus Capital Partners, Lakestar, Earlybird Venture Capital, and the High-Tech Gründerfonds.
Congratulations to the winners:
- Lúnasa Space: Accelerate Award from Freigeist
- GEMESYS: Accelerate Award from Amadeus Capital Partners and Investment Award from Earlybird Venture Capital
- Silica Corpora: Accelerate Award from Lakestar
- Veecle (Elexir AG): Investment Award from HTGF | High-Tech Gründerfonds
Editorial & contact:digitalHUB