Munich Startup: What problem do you solve?
Victoria Schöffel, CEO & Co-Founder: The most important things in a company happen in conversation: in meetings, with clients, in workshops, in the hallway. And that’s exactly where they get lost. If you’re taking notes, you’re not fully present, and if you’re just listening, you forget the details. Software note-takers solve this for video calls, but not for conversations in physical spaces. Kiolo is a small device that transcribes on-site conversations live and instantly turns them into minutes, highlighting decisions, open issues, and next steps. Later, you simply ask: “What did we decide about the product launch?”, and Kiolo finds the answer.
Munich Startup: What can only you do – as of today?
Victoria Schöffel: We combine our own hardware with AI that truly understands conversations. The whole concept is European and built with privacy in mind: data protection isn’t an afterthought for us, it’s the foundation. For many teams in Europe, that’s precisely why US tools are ruled out. And because Kiolo works without a laptop or a video call, it fits right in where real work happens.
A Solution for Conversations in Physical Spaces
Munich Startup: What was the trigger for founding the company?
Victoria Schöffel: We held countless conversations ourselves—with customers, partners, and within the team—and afterwards, exactly that one detail was always missing. At some point it became clear: this isn’t just our problem, everyone has it. And for conversations in physical spaces, there was no good solution, especially none from Europe.
Munich Startup: Was there a moment when you thought about giving up?
Victoria Schöffel: No, we haven’t thought about giving up. Of course, there are tough phases. Hardware is challenging, and between prototypes, production, and customs, you learn something new every week. But every piece of feedback shows us that we’re working on something people truly need. That keeps us going.
Munich Startup: How will you know in a year that you’re on the right track?
Victoria Schöffel: When the devices have arrived at our customers and Kiolo is sitting on their desks every day. In the end, sales figures are what count for us: When people buy Kiolo, recommend it, and teams use it in their daily work, we know we’re on the right track. We are a company designed for growth, and that’s how we measure ourselves.
“In Munich, you quickly meet the right people”
Munich Startup: Would you start a company in Munich again, and why?
Victoria Schöffel: Yes. Munich has an outstanding network: companies, founders, universities, and investors are closely connected here, and you quickly meet the right people—most recently, for instance, at Bits & Pretzels. For a product like Kiolo, it is crucial that enough people in this ecosystem know about us and try it out. There are hardly any better places for that.
Munich Startup: Bootstrapping or venture capital?
Victoria Schöffel: Currently, we are bootstrapping and have no need for external financing. We aren’t ruling out venture capital, but that depends on the right timing. Once we know how to grow faster with additional capital, that will be the right moment.
