News & Podcast

Summer slump? Think again! There was plenty going on in the ecosystem this week as well. Click through funding news, insolvencies, and important funding opportunities for tech startups.

Next week, I’m swapping my usual home for an apartment in the Werksviertel, right by Munich’s Ostbahnhof. For five days, I will be part of the coliving community at Werk1. My goal: to look behind the scenes of a place where Munich’s startup future is being shaped.

Our Munich Startup Expert Daniel Höpfner, founder of Zeitmaker, explains how tech-driven startups can leverage the research allowance for their development – even retroactively. Using LegalHero and Scaneca as examples, he shows how this can result in funding amounts of around 1.6 million and more than 300,000 euros respectively, and why taking a look at older development projects is particularly worthwhile in 2026.

Munich startup Redrink develops networked beverage dispensers that produce drinks directly at the point of consumption using tap water and natural essences. Following its market entry in Germany, companies such as Check24, Celonis, and Deutsche Bahn are already among its customers – now the startup is driving its expansion into Switzerland and Austria. We visited the startup for our “Inside MTZ” feature at the Munich Technology Center.

Summertime is vacation time. And so our Pitch & People videocast is also taking a summer break until early September. To make sure you don’t get bored waiting for the next episode, we’ve put together the five best pitches from a year of Pitch & People for you. Enjoy watching and have a great vacation!

Flix co-founder Daniel Krauss sees a strong home market, appropriate regulation, and local leadership teams as crucial foundations for international expansion. At the Munich Startup Festival, he discussed with Matthias Notz, Klaus Sailer, and Benjamin Domnik when startups should scale globally – and when a conscious focus on individual markets makes more sense.

74 million euros for Navvis: The Munich-based company wants to make spatial data usable for AI and robotics and drive its expansion with a focus on the US market.

Munich-based startup Padelcity has secured 12 million euros in a Series A financing round. Compagnie des Alpes, one of Europe’s largest leisure groups, is joining as a strategic investor. Together, the partners intend to capitalize on the padel boom and drive expansion in Germany and other European markets.

More than 500 guests from the Munich startup scene gathered at the summer party of the Munich Technology Center (MTZ). Together with Baystartup, the MTZ invited guests to mark the end of the season – with networking, startup pitches, and the awarding of the winner of the Bavarian semi-final of the Female Founders Cup.

Munich solar tech startup Sono Motors has announced the initiation of insolvency proceedings for Sono Motors GmbH. Following the end of the Sion solar car, a restructuring in 2024, and a fresh start with solar technology for commercial vehicles, the former flagship startup’s second attempt has now failed as well.

New look, fresh capital, and innovative solutions: This week we present the new look of Munich Startup, which is more than just a new design. What else has happened in the ecosystem? While 5U AI and Celsio report successful financing rounds, Treesense makes the water requirements of urban trees measurable, and Knowmanity preserves valuable experiential knowledge in companies. In addition, Helsing takes the top spot in the German unicorn ranking. Find these and other topics in our weekly review. Enjoy!

Landeshauptstadt München has launched the application phase for the Phönix Award 2026. Every two years, the city presents the award to honor successful entrepreneurs with a migration background who have been active in the market for at least three years and contribute to Munich as a business location through economic success and social commitment.