Found it!
What experiences and insights from the founding year 2024 continue to have an impact? Which approaches have proven successful, which formats have been particularly convincing, and which initiatives exemplify what successful start-up support can look like? On this page, we present inspiring start-up examples, voices from the network, and effective models of success.
Figures of the year
84
start-up teams were coached at HNU this year; in addition, 53 initial consultations were held.
10
scholarship recipients worked on their start-up projects as part of the EXIST-women program.
6
spin-offs were created from HNU this year.
Event highlights
Three years of Founders Space – three years of intensive work on start-up activities and topics: The Founders Space team will celebrate this success at the “Founders Space Break” on June 20 together with founders, partners of Founders Space, and other companions.
Voices and stories
HNU played a central role in establishing the regional start-up hub “KANU – Schwaben Entrepreneurship Nexus”: Together with three other universities in the region, it initiated a cross-university program to promote entrepreneurial skills. As part of the project funded by the Bavarian Ministry of Science, HNU developed a two-semester qualification program – the “Swabian Innovation Masterclass” – which has been providing students from all disciplines with in-depth knowledge of innovation and start-ups since 2024. The aim is to anchor entrepreneurial thinking at an early stage and systematically guide start-up projects from the university environment to implementation. HNU is thus making a decisive contribution to positioning Bavarian Swabia as a dynamic start-up location.
In the KANU project, we are combining the innovative strength of four Swabian start-up universities under one roof and establishing ourselves as a home for forward-looking start-ups. I look forward to working together to shape Swabia as a center of business and innovation and to supporting a new generation of future leaders!
Project of the year
Facilitating access to education with AI: HNU team “Campus Ready” receives EXIST start-up grant
With their “Campus Ready” project, launched in 2024, Mohammad Anees Raza, Süleyman Emre Özdemir, Lena Lingg, and Abhishek Arun Savakar aim to make the complex selection process more efficient and fairer through AI-supported procedures. Every year, around 700,000 international prospective students apply for a place at a German university. Due to differences in educational backgrounds, individual assessments are required, which until now have mostly been conducted in face-to-face interviews. However, this practice is time-consuming and often leads to bottlenecks due to limited resources.
This is where Campus Ready comes in: the digital solution enables a standardized yet individual assessment of knowledge, regardless of time and place. This creates an admissions process that is not only fairer but also more scalable. The aim is to pave the way for more qualified talent to attend German universities and, in the long term, to help secure a skilled workforce.
The team received the EXIST start-up grant from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection for this idea. The project was developed in the Founders Space at HNU, where the team was supported with technical expertise and practical guidance in the further development of their business idea.
Winner of the year
Startup Garage at HNU promotes social startup ideas
Practical startup support meets social impact: As part of the Startup Garage, students developed creative business ideas with social added value, such as apps for healthy eating or platforms for promoting social contacts. The winning team, “Rundum Ulm,” impressed with a social business concept that aims to connect people in Ulm through joint activities. The Start-up Garage was supervised at HNU by Prof. Dr. Thomas Bayer and Carina Volk-Schor and implemented in collaboration with Ulm University of Technology and the University of Ulm as part of StartupSÜD.
For three months, interdisciplinary teams worked intensively on their ideas. They were supported by coaches from universities and industry. The Start-up Garage imparted entrepreneurial knowledge, promoted teamwork, and helped participants develop concrete solutions to social challenges.
I have never learned in such a comprehensive way before. From teamwork to financial planning—it was an experience I can only recommend to everyone.
Sweet Treat of the year
This is what entrepreneurial spirit tastes like: MBA student Jan Winter demonstrated how research can be turned into tangible market experience at HNU. As part of his master's thesis, he investigated innovative strategies for brand building in the ice cream industry and used the HNU campus as a real-life test field. A specially installed ice cream machine in Building B provided practical data on purchasing behavior and product acceptance. HNU actively supported the project, promoting the transfer between academic study and entrepreneurial practice. Jan Winter studied in the General Management MBA program at the HNU Center for Continuing Education. In collaboration with a regional ice cream manufacturer, he analyzed success factors for brand building in the B2B sector as part of his thesis and tested various ice cream flavors directly on site. The machine was open to all campus visitors and residents.
