Munich Startup: Who are you and what do you do? Please introduce yourselves briefly!
Leftshift One: We have developed Europe's first operating system for artificial intelligence that respects data protection and ethics. Our AIOS (Artificial Intelligence Operating System) is a technical development environment on which various applications – so-called "skills" – run. These enable, for example, automated text interpretation, text creation from speech, image processing, and targeted data analysis. The operating system runs not only in-house developed skills, but also complex AI "skills" from certified third-party providers.
Leftshift One was founded by CEO Patrick Ratheiser and CTO Christian Weber. We currently employ around 40 people at two locations: our headquarters in Graz and Munich. US magazine Forbes recently named us one of the 30 most promising young companies in the DACH region in the field of artificial intelligence. The international investment firm Eqventure and ARM founder Hermann Hauser are among our investors.
CEO Patrick Ratheiser studied business administration and computer science in Graz. After working as a software developer, he worked as a project and engagement manager at various companies in the telecom and big data sectors. CTO Christian Weber, born in 1990, is already considered one of Europe's AI pioneers: He laid the foundation for this as a software developer and IT project manager for an international corporation. Weber studied business informatics.
Munich Startup: What problem does your company solve?
Leftshift One: With the help of our AIOS, it is possible to assign and aggregate applications up to 1,800 times faster than humans could. This example demonstrates: The skills of our AIOS replace routine tasks – and create scope and capacity for new developments in companies. Crucially, our AIOS offers European security standards – even "on-premise" if necessary, i.e., in your own infrastructure. The application concept can be applied to many industries: Offers, inquiries, or even images for quality control can be processed automatically using our skills.
Leftshift One: “There is definitely a certain cultural closeness between Munich and Austria”
Munich Startup: You recently opened your first international location with your Munich office. Why did you choose Munich?
Leftshift One: The Munich economic area offers Startups Munich offers a highly attractive environment for high-tech companies. The diverse economic sectors—from the automotive sector to mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and medical technology, as well as a thriving software and financial industry—demonstrate the city's high level of innovation, which is also reflected in the numerous DAX-listed companies located here. We firmly believe that our AI operating system, which can be used across industries, can occupy a technological niche in the Munich ecosystem.
Munich Startup: Was a certain cultural proximity perhaps the deciding factor in choosing Munich?
Leftshift One: It's not for nothing that Bavaria is considered Austria's tenth federal state: There is definitely a certain cultural affinity between Munich and Austria – and perhaps especially with Styria. But it's not just dirndls, lederhosen, and certain traditions that connect the two states – innovation is also a key element: Styria, like Bavaria, is one of the most innovative regions in the EU, with a research and development rate exceeding five percent.
Munich Startup: What are your further plans?
Leftshift One: Groundbreaking innovations are already planned for the future: For example, it is already possible to access third-party applications via the AIOS. This allows customers to easily integrate existing AI concepts. This allows us to represent the entire world of artificial intelligence in a single operating system. Always with the credo of improving people's lives – in the symbiosis between man and machine. In the medium term, we aim to become the market leader in Europe with this data protection and ethics-oriented concept. To achieve this, we work closely with international high-tech partners and invest around a third of our development work in research.
