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Your startups of the month

Which startups particularly interested Munich Startup readers this month? We explore this question in our "Startups of the Month" feature and select the top five.

January 31, 2025 3 min reading time

Lilium
1st place: Bankruptcy announcement in autumn, rescue at Christmas: The year 2024 ended for Lilium However, the Munich-based air taxi manufacturer, which had to file for insolvency for its two main subsidiaries, Lilium GmbH and Lilium eAircraft GmbH, in October of the same year after failed efforts to obtain state aid, was able to announce the signing of a purchase agreement with Mobile Uplift Corporation towards the end of 2024. Mobile Uplift intends to invest more than €200 million in the insolvent company to finance its market entry. The 750 employees who have already been laid off will also be brought back into the company. (Photo: Lilium)
Ark Climate
2nd place: Ark Climate is a Munich-based software company developing a modern, collaborative operating system for climate protection in cities. Ruth Bosse explained exactly what this entails in an interview this month. She is the co-founder and managing director of Ark Climate with Michael Fröhlich. The startup has received awards including the Digital Innovations Founder's Award and the GovTech Focus Award at the German Federal Government's Digital Summit. (Photo: Ark Climate)
Camperboys Off
3rd place: Last October, Camperboys GmbH presented its camper rental Off filed for insolvency due to economic challenges. The stated goal at the time was to find a new investor and continue the business with their help. This plan didn't work out, but there is some positive news. Vanever, the camper rental company of Freeventure GmbH, has decided to take over parts of Off's business. This will ensure that the Hamburg location and significant parts of the existing back office and station team will continue. Under the new leadership of Philipp J. Jacke, founder and CEO of Vanever, both the team spirit and the quality of service will be maintained. (Photo: Camperboys GmbH)
Foodji
4th place: Foodji In January, Foodji expanded its Series A round by a further €5.1 million (US$5.3 million), thus increasing its funding round from March 2023, which totaled €21.4 million (US$23 million). Foodji attracted Next Food Capital, a European food tech venture capital fund managed by Kharis Capital, as a new investor in the oversubscribed round. Existing investors Movendo Capital and DLF Venture are also participating in the expanded Series A. Foodji delivers fresh, healthy, and affordable food to companies throughout Germany. The team around founders Nicolas Luig, Oliver Friedmann, Moritz Munte, Felix Munte, and Daniel von Canal relies on smart food vending machines. The food offerings are tailored to employees' preferences using AI. (Photo: Foodji Marketplace GmbH)
Neoshare
5th place: Neoshare has developed a SaaS solution designed to digitize and streamline the management and implementation of project and real estate financing. Using the platform, real estate companies and project developers are also expected to gain additional security in the implementation of financing projects and transactions.
This concept has also convinced Hamburger Sparkasse, Sparkasse KölnBonn, Sparkasse Hannover, and Kreissparkasse Ludwigsburg. According to the startup, with their investment, the savings banks are acquiring shares equal to those of the Volksbanken. Several Volksbanken Raiffeisenbanken invested €19 million last spring, together with a German family office and strategic partners from the real estate industry. (Photo: Neoshare AG)
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