Startups

Startup City Highlights

31 January 2025
Top monthly reports from Hamburg's startup ecosystem

The year 2024 meant some good news for startups struggling with the downward economic trend after the volume of investments increased 17 per cent over 2023. In December, 1KOMMA5° announced it had raised EUR 150 million in a financing round. The investment accounted for a significant share of the total of EUR 412 million invested in startups across Hamburg in 2024. Bavaria topped the rank of German states with around EUR 2.3 billion followed by Berlin with EUR 2.2 billion while Hamburg ranked fifth, according to the Ernest & Young Startup Barometer.

Three means of funding in 2025 

nextMedia Hamburg is looking for innovative business ideas in the content and technology sector for its latest Media Lift incubator. Applications for the Media Lift Batch 7are being accepted until the deadline of February 18, 2025. The AI Startup Hub is also looking for startups that use artificial intelligence in their business models as potential recipients of its grants. Applications are being accepted until the deadline of February 16, 2025. Meanwhile, the Chamber of Commerce is launching a mentoring scheme for the most promising startups in the healthcare sector, E&Y said. Startups must be in the early stages of founding or planning to do so.

Established and successful scaleups now have until the deadline of February 23, 2025 to apply for the Soft Landing scheme beginning in April 2025. On behalf of the Ministry of Economics and Innovation, Scaleup Hamburg, a service of Hamburg Invest, is seeking five international companies that wish to grow and establish themselves in Hamburg's ecosystem. The Soft Landing scheme helps each scale-up launch successfully on the German market from Hamburg.

Alicia Faridi and Maximiliane Tetzlaff, founders of Fabel
Alicia Faridi and Maximiliane Tetzlaff, founders of Fabel
© Fabel

2025 looks promising

The Hamburg-based startup Fabel, for instance, has raised EUR 1.3 million in a pre-seed round this year. This comes after it received EUR 400,000 in state funding. The fresh capital will go towards expanding its platform for carers and establishing strategic partnerships in the healthcare sector, Fabel said. Meanwhile, the logistics startup Flowfox raised EUR 7 million in its latest financing round to fund the expansion of its platform for import container logistics. Another Hamburg-based startup, Konvoi, closed its latest funding round with a new seven-figure sum. Konvoi is developing an alarm system to prevent cargo being stolen from lorries. 

Alpacas used by Berking Biotechnology
Alpacas used by Berking Biotechnology
© Berking Biotechnology


tecHHub for Life Science Startups

 

The tecHHub in the Altona Innovation Park offers startups in the capital-intense research sector ideal opportunities. Built by Hamburg Invest on behalf of the Ministry of Economics, the tecHHub is currently home to startup teams working on pioneering solutions. Dr Alejandro Rojas, joint founder of Berking Biotechnology, explains the link to alpacas. The startup uses these friendly animals to produce antibodies that counteract diseases such as COVID-19 and cancer. Established in Chile, the founders moved to Hamburg to continue their growth. The up-and-coming company found ideal conditions in the emerging Science City Hamburg Bahrenfeld. Berking Biotechnology recently moved into the tecHHub, which provides office space, meeting rooms and laboratories, backed by the Hamburg Invest business development agency. This has enabled the company to keep costs and risks to a minimum.
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Sources and further information

Startup City Hamburg

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