Startuprad.io™ – Europe’s Voice on Startups, VC, Innovation & Growth – Details, episodes & analysis

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Dive into the world of AI-driven robotics with Jan Liphardt, founder of OpenMind Robotics and associate professor at Stanford University, on Startuprad.io!

OpenMind is pioneering open-source software for robots, enabling them to engage in conversations, assist with tasks, and even tutor in math. In this episode, Jan discusses the inspiration behind OpenMind, the challenges of developing robotics software, and the company's vision for the future of robotics, including its potential impact on industries like healthcare and elder care.

Discover:

• The genesis of OpenMind and its focus on AI-powered robot dogs for companionship and assistance.

• The challenges of developing robotics software, including ensuring safety and avoiding unintended actions.

• OpenMind's vision for the future of robotics, including its potential impact on industries like healthcare and elder care.

• The ethical considerations of AI-driven robotics and the need for broader societal discussion.

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The music used in our intro is "MF-297 : First Hero" licensed from Musicfox.com: https://www.musicfox.com/detailsuche/?searchtext=297&submit=search

Key Moments:

• [00:00:42] Jan Liphardt shares his background and connection to Germany.

• [00:01:35] Discover the inspiration behind OpenMind and its mission to bring AI to robotics.

• [00:03:26] Learn about the challenges of developing robotics software and the importance of understanding human interaction.

• [00:10:53] Explore the major industry shifts OpenMind is facilitating in the robotics landscape.

• [00:13:09] Uncover common misconceptions about AI-driven robotics and how OpenMind is addressing them.

• [00:19:10] Get a deep dive into OM one's core functionalities and architecture.

• [00:23:36] Hear about surprising uses of OM one in unexpected ways.

• [00:35:15] Understand the primary revenue model driving OpenMind and its growth strategy.

• [00:43:57] Learn about the core values that define OpenMind's company culture.

• [00:46:24] Discuss the ethical considerations as OpenMind scales and its impact on society.

Connect with Jan Liphardt:

• OpenMind Website: https://openmind.org/

• Jan Liphardt on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jan-liphardt/

Resources Mentioned:

• Stanford University: https://www.stanford.edu/

• CES: https://www.ces.tech/

• Starlink: https://www.starlink.com/

Connect with Startuprad.io:

• Linktr.ee: https://linktr.ee/startupradio

🚀 Big news from the DACH startup world! Finn raises €1B for car subscriptions, Cherry Ventures launches a €500M AI fund, but Lilium faces insolvency.

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🤯 Finn raises €1 BILLION for car subscriptions! But is it all good news? Lilium crashes back to earth with its second insolvency.  

We unpack the hottest DACH startup stories:

• VC gold rush: Cherry Ventures' new €500M AI fund

• Political earthquake: How the German election impacts YOU

• Exclusive insights: Top trends in AI, fintech, biotech, and more

🚀 Don't get left behind! Subscribe now for your weekly dose of DACH startup action.

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The music used in our intro is "MF-297 : First Hero" licensed from Musicfox.com: https://www.musicfox.com/detailsuche/?searchtext=297&submit=search 

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Welcome to another exciting episode of Startuprad.io, the leading podcast covering the startup ecosystem in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. In this episode, we dive into the innovative world of interactive educational toys with Jennifer Rink, Co-Founder and CEO of Tapari.

Tapari is transforming how children learn and play, introducing an innovative screen-free interactive playmat that combines digital storytelling with physical engagement. With a mission to enhance cognitive development, improve attention spans, and inspire creativity, Tapari has redefined what it means to play and learn in a modern world.

• Interactive Learning Meets Technology: Explore how Tapari’s smart playmat uses sensors, storytelling, and physical interaction to create an immersive learning experience for children.

• Sustainability in Toys: Learn how Tapari prioritizes eco-friendly materials and ethical production practices, meeting the growing demand for sustainable consumer goods.

• Challenges and Growth: Jennifer shares the challenges of developing a tech-heavy toy, the journey to secure funding, and how Tapari plans to scale internationally in the future.

• Educational Trends in 2024 and Beyond: Tapari fits into the rising trend of connected audio toys, bridging the gap between traditional play and modern education.

• The Future of Play: Get a glimpse into Tapari’s roadmap, including multilingual content, new interactive features, and potential applications for adult education and senior engagement.

"Tapari combines the best of physical and digital worlds to create a product that fosters decision-making, creativity, and fun," says Jennifer Rink.

This episode is perfect for parents, educators, startup founders, and investors who are keen to explore the future of edtech and interactive play. If you’re interested in how startups like Tapari are shaping the next generation of learning tools, this is a must-listen!

• The origin story of Tapari: From a creative entrepreneurship project to winning the CherryPicks Competition 2024.

• How interactive toys like Tapari support child development without screens.

• Practical advice for startups navigating complex markets like edtech and consumer goods.

• Original Blog Post: https://www.startuprad.io/post/interactive-educational-toys-transforming-learning-through-startup-innovation

• Work with us: https://www.startuprad.io/become-a-partner

• Subscribe: https://linktr.ee/startupradio

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Get exclusive insights into the latest patent filings of GSA/DACH startups. Discover where they’re going and what impact they may have on your business. QuantIP is an analytics company that offers data and analytics on patent data and, for us, went through 460 categories and more than 16.000 patent filings. With their tools, we get you an exclusive insight into the patent filings of 2022. Tune in to learn more about the industries and areas startups are filing patents in.

Lucas is the CEO and co-founder of QuantIP. He held multiple positions, including in journalism, before co-founding the startup. His positions include editor-in-chief at €uro, a magazine for sophisticated private and professional investors (a German equivalent of Barron’s Finance and Investing News). He also held positions with Axel Springer Financial Media before. He was always working around investing and asset management. He holds degrees from Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU), Axel Springer School for Journalism, and an MBA from Stockholm School of Economics.

QuantIP is a Munich-based big data startup, exclusively focused on patent analytics. The startup is already closing in on breaking even in the next 6–12 months.

• Data feeds tailored to the needs of systematic and quantitative equity investors.
• Thematic search tailored to themed-driven asset managers, e.g., deal sourcing.
• The pre-produced company reports on companies, available via platforms like capital iq from S&P, or AlphaSense

QuantIP went deep into its database with more than 16.000 patents and dug through to find the 2022 filings from startup companies in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Large companies file many patents, and there are somewhere between two and three million every year. This report defines startups as companies that filed their first patent before 2018. They also have only 3–9 inventions (an invention is a novel idea, and the patent is only the protection of it so that an invention can be patented in several markets).

For 2022 we look at almost 8.000 patent filings from a bit over 1.500 startups for GSA/DACH:

https://medium.com/startuprad-io/where-are-gsa-startups-heading-insight-from-recent-patent-filings-with-quantip-exclusive-data-6b059d561480

Mentioned in this episode:

Learn more

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Learn how CreditShelf, a leading German fintech company, secured 100 million euros of investment from Goldman Sachs and what that means for businesses seeking credit.

CreditShelf recently received 100 mn € from Goldman Sachs to lend out via their platform; Goldman joins other investors like the European Investment Fund. The fintech works with Raisin Bank to get SMEs loans within four weeks. They IPOed already in 2018 in Frankfurt as the first pure-play fintech in Germany.

Daniel is a returning guest. We interviewed CrediShelf shortly after their IPO in 2018 (link below). Daniel holds an MBA from the University of Mannheim and a Ph.D. from the University of Düsseldorf. He has experience s a management consultant from Kienbaum and Bain & Company. He has also been an executive director for Swiss banking giant UBS for eight years in their investment bank (Fixed Income, Currencies and Commodities (FICC)) in Zürich and Singapore. He is one of the three co-founders of CreditShelf, which was set up in 2016, and currently acting as the CFO of the company.

CreditShelf is a credit platform connecting institutional investors and German Mittelstand (German small and medium enterprises). They provide corporate loans using a licensed bank (Raisin Bank). The loans work as a fast stand-alone solution (can be paid out within 4 weeks) or part of a more significant credit, involving other parties and banks. The company has successfully developed an online credit marketplace platform whose processes are supported by proprietary, data-driven risk analysis software. On their platform, they offer loans for companies located in Germany from 100.000 € to 5 M €, stretching up to 5 years for supplies, scale-up, real estate, and M&A. The CreditShelf platform models the entire credit process, from the loan application through credit analysis and risk management to loan disbursement and servicing.

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Here is our publication calendar: https://calendar.google.com/calendar/embed?src=012i27ak525qi3smgjl8v9tbio%40group.calendar.google.com&ctz=Europe%2FBerlin

Here is our blog post: https://medium.com/startuprad-io/this-fintech-got-100-mn-from-goldman-sachs-to-invest-creditshelf-782d9f2223b7

Chapters:

00:00:00 Intro

00:01:50 Daniel Bartsch, CFO - Former Management Consultant and Investment Banker

00:03:16 The Company - CreditShelf

00:13:42 Loan Demand in Germany Outstripping Supply

00:23:44 CreditShelf’s Outlook on the Economy in 2023

00:25:18 Hessen and Frankfurt as Startup Hub

#startupradio #startup #startups #fintech #fintechfinance #fintechstartups #fintechstartup #frankfurt #germany #credit #sme #lending #lendingcompany #credit #venturecapital #technology #techstartup #techstartups #joemenninger

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Newsly gathers the most trending web articles, reads them in a natural human voice, and showcases trending podcasts from over 80 countries. Newsly was recently selected by BestStartup.ca as the top 15... Folge direkt herunterladen

Learn the secrets of how to create an effective startup ecosystem with Thomas' insights from DEEP Ecosystems. Discover what made Odense, Denmark such a successful start-up hub, and find out more in our blog post. This interview is part one of a series of two videos, where we discuss Munich in part two. There is much more to learn in the presentation we link to in our blog.

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The European startup scene is changing fast. There are new players, old ones fading away, and even more to come in their place- all vying for a piece of this growing pie! To avoid getting left behind, you need regular updates on what's going on so that our entrepreneurs can stay one step ahead when building or investing in companies here. That's why we started the "Pulse of the European Startup Ecosystem" which will provide you with quarterly podcasts chronicling different aspects related to startup activity across European Hubs, supported by the data from the specialized analytics company DEEP Ecosystems.

One of the starting points of DEEP Ecosystems is The Boulder Thesis. It was poropesed by Brad Feld (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brad_Feld). He formulated it as a basis to explain the success of the local Boulder, CO startup community.

Entrepreneurs must lead the startup community

The leaders must have a long-term commitment

The startup community must include anyone who wants to participate in it

The startup community must have continual activities that engage in the entire entrepreneurial stack

Odense is with around 200.000 people only the 4th largest city in Denmark, but still managed to become a hub for Robotics companies and raised more than 860 mn € since 2015. It is world-class in robotics, raising 2020 alone 50 mn € for companies in this cluster. Companies located there include Universal Robots, Cabinplant, senmatic, MiR, ODICO, Shape Robotics, purple robotics, SCAPE, and many more. It all started out with Universal Robots founded in 2005 and exited in 2015. The three founders decided to invest in robotics startups locally. This cluster is a public-private partnership. Over time they had seven exits and three IPOs, very impressive for such a small town. They currently have 292 companies in robotics or related to it with 3,74 bn € annual revenues.

https://medium.com/startuprad-io/how-to-build-a-startup-hub-101-european-startup-pulse-d1a024393935

#startup #startups #hub #startuphub #london #berlin #paris #denmark #entrepreneurship #entrepreneur #entrepreneurs #innovation #stationf #sucess #sucesso #mindset #businessowner #business #techstartups #techstartup #germany #austria #switzerland #denmark #france

Mentioned in this episode:

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Find Us on Newsly

Newsly gathers the most trending web articles, reads them in a natural human voice, and showcases trending podcasts from over 80 countries. Newsly was recently selected by BestStartup.ca as the top 15 consumer apps in Canada and got to the top 3 daily products on Product Hunt. Register here:... Folge direkt herunterladen

Welcome to our March 2023 wrap-up with important news from the startup scenes in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland in 30 minutes or less 🙂.

We follow our top-down structure in the news: The top news, followed by a bird’s eye view at the startup ecosystem, next deeper looking at fascinating startup cities, and we end with general information. And for those serious about startups, there is a collection called: Stay ahead of the curve, where we share exciting reads, articles, studies, and podcasts.

Welcome to our startup news wrap-up for March with Chris from New York City and Joe from Frankfurt. We recorded this news episode on March 27th, 2023. A little disclaimer: You may have noticed a lot of stress in February here at Startuprad.io. We should have remembered a few news items in our backlog and added them to this episode.

All news not yet included here will be published in our next news episode for April, to be published on April 27th. Find all links to the quoted information on our Medium blog link below.

If you celebrate it: Happy Easter! We also try to bring you a bit of culture from Germany here.

Good news and bad news for Fintechs Raisin and N26. Raisin gets its unicorn status back and gets a lot of new business, so much in fact that the complaints at Bafin are mounting. N26 generated 200 mn € revenue in 2021 but has to deal with a senior employee uprising. Neobank Ruuky is saved last minute. Startup Bonify reportedly makes a 20 mn € exit, but employees only get invited to a barbeque. GoStudent is a no-go with courts, and the first Goldman-backed fintech in Germany struggles. Bavarian Airlines may be just a hoax, and Grover shows the first signs on their way to an IPO.

Let’s talk startups:

www.startup.radio

Find all options to subscribe to our newsletter, podcast, YouTube channel, or listen to our internet radio station here: https://linktr.ee/startupradio

This recording was made possible by HTAI and the Enterprise Europe Network Hessen. These organizations have made tremendous contributions to helping startup businesses succeed and thrive, providing a range of services from helping to find grants to ongoing partnerships. By taking advantage of these resources, startup companies can network and develop innovative strategies for success on the international stage. The dedicated support of HTAI and the Enterprise Europe Network Hessen is paramount in providing startup businesses with the tools for lasting success. Look for our dedicated sub-podcast in partnership with them: Tech Startups Germany on our https://linktr.ee/startupradio

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Newsly gathers the most trending web articles, reads them in a natural human voice, and showcases trending podcasts from over 80 countries. Newsly was recently selected by BestStartup.ca as one of the top 15 consumer apps in Canada and got to the top 3 daily products on Product Hunt.

Register here: www.newsly.me and use the coupon code “STARTUPRAD” to get a one-month free premium subscription.

The... Folge direkt herunterladen

Germany has adopted a startup strategy for the first time. One should pay attention if Europe's largest economy makes such a step. The ten bn € Future Fund and others are part of the program, which channels billions in investments to startups in Europe and especially Germany. Therefore, this episode has a special guest, the Commissioner for Startups and Digital Economy for Germany, Dr. Anna Christmann, a Bundestag (the German federal parliament ) member (MdB). We touch on some of the ten points of the strategy and their criticism. The money comes from the ten bn € startup program (aka Future Fund) we covered with her predecessor in June 2021 (YouTube: https://youtu.be/kZxoEUa_6Uk) during the Merkel government. We also brush the topics of the German Deep Tech and Climate Fund, worth one bn €, and the European Tech Champion Initiative, a fund of funds worth four bn €, and how they fit into the programs.

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Our special guest is the Commissioner for Startups and Digital Economy for Germany, Dr. Anna Christmann, a Bundestag (the German federal parliament) member. This video follows her predecessor's interview from June 2021, where we explored how Germany will spend ten bn € in the newly set up startup program (YouTube: https://youtu.be/kZxoEUa_6Uk). She is a Green Party (Die Grünen) member, one of the three parties forming Germany's coalition government under Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

In broad terms, the strategy has 10 points in our show notes, links to further readings, and the full policy document in English. (Link below).

1. Strengthen financing for startups
2. Help startups to attract talent, including through improved employee ownership opportunities.
3. Develop a spirit of entrepreneurship and facilitate the setting up new digital businesses.
4. Strengthen female entrepreneurs and support diversity in startups
5. Facilitate startup spin-offs from science and universities
6. Improve the policy environment for startups that serve the common good
7. Mobilise startup competencies for public contracts
8. Make it easier for startups to access data
9. Strengthen regulatory sandboxes and facilitate access to them for startups
10. Put the focus on startups

We already covered the ten bn € startup program (aka Future Fund) with the predecessor of Mrs. Christmann in June 2021. This fund is the source of money to be invested in different initiatives, some mentioned in the interview and shortly covered below (DTCF and ETCI). You can learn more in this interview here on YouTube https://youtu.be/kZxoEUa_6Uk.

The one bn € deep tech and climate fund is newly set up as part of the government program.

Germany also invests one bn € in the European Tech Champions Initiative. Five EU Member States launched the European Tech Champions Initiative (ETCI), a Fund of Funds that will channel much-needed late-stage growth capital to promising European innovators. At the time of the recording, four bn € have been committed to the initiative.

The European Circular Bioeconomy Fund (ECBF) is a venture capital fund consisting of both public and private investors. It focuses on driving the transformation to a bio-based, sustainable economy throughout Europe. This venture underlines the EU's commitment to its Green New Deal and sets higher standards for venture capital projects. Backed by venture capital, those companies funded must not only demonstrate economic growth potential but also uphold principles of environmental, social, and governance through their work. This fund stands as one part of a larger and definitive effort by the EU to become carbon neutral by 2050.

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A startup's journey can be a tough one, but it doesn't have ́to feel like you're alone on your quest! Invest in others' success with us by joining our community of entrepreneurs who are building amazing things every day - no matter how big or small their ideas may seem at first glance.

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Michael is one of the three founders and General Partners of the European Circular Bioeconomy Fund (ECBF). The German entrepreneur wrote and executed the business plan of High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF), the most active early-stage fund in Europe, investing in innovative technologies and business models since 2005. As the first managing director, he led HTGF until 2019. Michael has 25 years of experience in investment and management in the venture capital industry.

The European Circular Bioeconomy Fund (ECBF) is an impact investment fund. Initiated by the European Union, it contributes alongside others as a financial instrument to achieve the goals of the European Commission's (EC) EU Green Deal.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the main investor in the ECBF with EUR 100 million. Additional funds were invested by another public investor, NRW.BANK, as well as numerous private investors such as Nestlé, Neste, Corbion, BÜFA, Koehler Group, Volkswohlbund, Hettich, Invest NL, Telos, Heino, and more.

The fund invests the available capital of 300 Mio. euros in ambitious and visionary companies that advance the bio-economy and circular economy with innovative technologies or business models and thus have a sustainable impact on the European economy. The goal is to accelerate the growth of bio-economy companies and create pan-European, global players. The goal of generating a very high return on investment is directly linked to this and is on the same level as the impact goal.

The regional focus of the investments includes the EU-27 countries and the 16-Horizon2020 associated countries.

The current portfolio includes (amongst others) the following companies:

Peel Pioneers

ProLupin

Aphea.Bio

Nuritas

Elicit Plant

InOvo

Protix

Biosyntia

Trapview

ECBFs Vision is to build up a prosperous economy realigned with nature. To get there they aim to identify the most promising investment targets in the European Bioeconomy, with both good financial returns and a huge impact on the environment. Thus, ECBF is interested in connecting with entrepreneurs, investors, and business promotion stakeholders with robust business networks in the bioeconomy. Find all requirements... Folge direkt herunterladen

We are back with quarterly cooperation with DEEP Ecosystems research from Munich. Today we talk about a few highlights of their extensive 2022 report. Our current impression is that the VC market could start a new cycle from the lows of Q4 2022. We already see a new uptick in seed investments in Barcelona, London, Paris, Berlin, and Stockholm. Also, London is losing some of its edge as a European Startup Ecosystem compared to the other hubs. For VCs, the next hot sector to invest in Europe is cleantech. Despite the job cuts in 2022, at the year's end, there still have been more employees at startups across Europe than before Corona.

We are always sharing new resources with you. Find all of our options below.

We want to make sure that we provide what's best for your growing team, so please take a look at these additional ways in which can help!

https://linktr.ee/startupradio

The European startup scene is changing fast. There are new players, old ones fading away, and even more to come in their place- all vying for a piece of this growing pie! To avoid getting left behind, you need regular updates on what’s going on so that our entrepreneurs can stay one step ahead when building or investing in companies here. That’s why we started the “Pulse of the European Startup Ecosystem” which will provide you with quarterly podcasts chronicling different aspects related to startup activity across European Hubs, supported by the data from the specialized analytics company DEEP Ecosystems.

Newsly gathers the most trending web articles, reads them in a natural human voice, and showcases trending podcasts from over 80 countries. Newsly was recently selected by BestStartup.ca as the top 15 consumer apps in Canada and got to the top 3 daily products on Product Hunt.

Register here: http://www.newsly.me/ and use the coupon code “STARTUPRAD” to get a one-month free premium subscription.

Startup funding took a hit on a European Level across the board regarding total investments, especially in Q4 2022. This matches what we have seen in our interview with kfw covering their VC and PE barometer.

On the excellent news site, there is a substantial uptick towards the end of the year 2022 in announced seed funding rounds. All large European Hubs, Barcelona, London, Paris, Berlin, and Stockholm, showed more seed funding rounds. Only Amsterdam did show a decline, which may be due to the available data.

Exits and large fundraisings have filled the coffers of VCs, who build up their teams during the good years. This leads to increasing pressure to invest on the VCs by their investors, called LPs (think insurance companies and pension funds).

Cleantech has also emerged as a new growth sector for VC investments - on a European level. In the last 6 months, compared to the last 3 years, cleantech investments have increased disproportionally.

Classic sectors for VC investments remained sexy in the 2nd half of 2022, including fintech, media, health, and AI & big data.

Hardware is also a sector - along with consumer apps - just on the edge of becoming a growth story for VC investments.

Despite the job cuts announced in recent weeks or months, there is still net positive job growth in the European Startup Ecosystem - compared to before corona.... Folge direkt herunterladen