Heidelberg: Germany’s startup capital is booming!

Heidelberg: Germany’s startup capital is booming!

Heidelberg has established itself as the leading city in Germany for business start-ups per capita in 2024. This remarkable information comes from the “Startup Association”, which states that the city takes first place in the per capita ranking, ahead of well-known metropolises such as Berlin and Munich. In the last five years, almost 115 new companies have been founded in Heidelberg, with around 20 of them opening their doors last year.

A focus of the new start-ups is in the areas of medicine and software. For example, the start-up “Fertia Health” was founded in 2024 and operates as an online fertility clinic. The founders Anna-Lena Hudalla, Kilian Vomstein and Ruben Kuon plan to increase their workforce from the current 15 employees to 30. The associated app “Fertia” will be available from the end of January and promises to relieve doctors of work and enable faster access to reproductive medicine.

Growth and innovative strength

The rise of Heidelberg as a start-up location is also fueled by the numerous research and educational institutions. Vice-Rector Katja Patzel-Mattern highlights the lively knowledge landscape, which is supported by top-class institutes such as the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ). The Rhine-Neckar metropolitan region also plays a crucial role as it brings capital and qualified companies to the city.

In addition, local institutions such as the start-up institute at the SRH University offer space for start-ups. The city of Heidelberg actively promotes business start-ups through innovation parks and special laboratory areas. In addition, the city's Founder's Prize is awarded to increase the visibility and recognition of new companies.

Heidelberg is not only considered an important science and business location in Germany, but also an important hub for start-ups, with a wide range of start-ups in the areas of life sciences, IT and cleantech. According to an analysis by Startup Genome, the city has a high density of start-ups compared to other German cities and is home to over 250 start-ups in innovative industries such as artificial intelligence and medical technology.

The well-known founders and companies in Heidelberg include figures such as Prof. Dr. Andreas Hochberger from Heidelberg Engineering as well as start-ups such as Heidelberg Pharma and Heidelberg Instruments. The city is also an active place for investors and founder support programs, including Heidelberg Startup Week and the Life Science meets IT Hackathon.

– Submitted by West-East media