5 Munich startups for Industry 4.0

Roundpeg Technologies develops a special robot for Industry 4.0. It is designed to recognize people in its vicinity, allowing the startup to actively prevent accidents even at high work speeds. Founders Oliver Krieg and Etienne Eichstaedt want to revolutionize production with their invention and drastically reduce costs for automated solutions on the assembly line. In an interview with Munich Startup, Oliver Krieg explains: “We don’t need a fence because our robot recognizes people and doesn’t endanger them. This makes it much easier to further automate tasks in operations and present new manufacturing concepts that are much more flexible and scale much better.” (Image: Roundpeg Technologies)

Sewts has just completed fresh funding. The startup, founded in 2019 by former mechanical engineering students Alexander Bley, Tim Doerks, and Till Rickert, is working on technologies for automated processing of deformable materials such as textiles or films. These have so far been excluded from advances in automation technology due to their complex material properties. To address this, the Munich robotics startup has developed control and image processing software that enables robots to predict the behavior of non-rigid materials during gripping based on intelligent algorithms in real time and respond precisely to it. At the end of 2022, Sewts celebrated successful market entry with its production-ready product Velum – a robotic unit designed for industrial commercial laundries. Going forward, the startup’s technology is intended to automate further manual tasks such as sewing or the installation of cable harnesses. Following a pre-seed round in 2019 and a seed round in 2021, the Munich company has now secured seven million euros in its Series A. (Image: Sewts)

Embedded Ocean: Founded in early 2020, this Munich startup has developed Xentara, a solution for real-time machine communication. It enables all legacy systems and protocols used by a manufacturing company to be connected to each other and supplemented with new technologies and standards. The platform provides companies with an easy entry into data-driven production processes – beginning with individual smart machines through to the final vision of Industry 4.0, the self-optimizing “smart factory”. To support financing, Embedded Ocean brought Chinese company Justech Precision Industry on board. The group invested a six-figure sum in 2020. (Image: Embedded Ocean)

Nebumind operates in the field of optimized and new processes for Industry 4.0. The startup develops software that monitors the quality of components throughout the entire manufacturing process. To do this, the software collects all production data it receives from machines and sensors during the manufacturing of a component. From this, it creates “digital component twins” that workers can view on their laptops. This makes it easier to trace production errors and also simplifies production optimization. The company was founded in 2019 by Caroline Albert and Franz Engel; its supporters include ESA BIC Bavaria and the SMEs Executive Agency of the European Innovation Council (EIC). (Image: Nebumind)

Blackwave: Since 2016, this Munich startup has supplied components to vehicle manufacturing and aerospace. Blackwave uses a process known since the 1960s, but with the most modern materials – carbon. The components are characterized by low weight and high stability. The process is considered highly automated and cost-efficient as it produces almost no manufacturing waste. Blackwave’s customers include renowned corporations such as Airbus, Porsche, Webasto, and the ESA. Munich startups such as Isar Aerospace, Vectoflow, and Fazua also rely on the technology. Last year, the startup completed its final funding round and raised four million euros. Investors include Ann-Kristin and Paul Achleitner, among others, as well as Alpine Space Ventures. (Image: Blackwave)