For the tenth time, founders, students, researchers, VCs and many other guests from business and science met at the Entrepreneurship Day of the Technical University of Munich (TUM)During a full-day program, startups presented their work, prospective founders participated in workshops, and experts discussed innovation. The Presidential Entrepreneurship Award was also presented during the event. The jury selected business ideas that were significantly based on research findings, had high growth potential, and had already achieved initial financing success. This year, Isar Aerospace was honored to receive the €10,000 prize.
Isar Aerospace: Efficient satellite transport
Isar Aerospace has developed a launch vehicle tailored for small and medium-sized satellites, enabling efficient transport into space. The startup not only produces the technology but also plans to organize launches for its customers.
The founders, Daniel Metzler, Josef Fleischmann, and Markus Brandl, studied aerospace engineering at TUM and worked on rocket engines in the WARR student research group. After founding the company in 2018, they built their first prototypes in the high-tech MakerSpace workshop. They also received support from UnternehmerTUM in the Xpreneurs incubator. Unternehmertum Venture Capital Partners invested in the startup, along with various other VCs from multiple financing rounds. Isar Aerospace currently employs around 350 people in Ottobrunn, near the TUM Department of Aerospace and Geodesy. The startup plans to launch its first rocket this year.
Other finalists: Fernride and Tanso Technologies
The startups also made it to the finals Fernride and Tanso TechnologiesFernride aims to solve the driver shortage in the logistics industry with remote driving. Trucks equipped with the company's technology can be controlled from the office. The founders, Dr. Maximilian Fisser, Jean-Michael Georg, and Hendrik Kramer, studied at the TUM School of Engineering and Design and the TUM School of Management. The technology is based on research at the Chair of Automotive Engineering.
Tanso Technologies has developed software that calculates CO2 emissions both for the entire company and for individual products. This allows companies to not only save time when documenting their CO2 emissions, but also analyze individual production phases for potential improvements. The technology is based on the master's thesis of Gyri Reiersen, who studied Robotics, Cognition, and Intelligence at TUM. Co-founder Till Wiechmann attended the Entrepreneurial Masterclass after completing his management studies. Both completed the additional course Center for Digital Technology and Management (CDTM), in which students work in interdisciplinary teams to design new technologies, develop concrete products, and prepare for a company's founding.
Mentor of Excellence Award
Isabell M. Welpe, Professor of Strategy and Organization, also received the TUM Startup Mentor of Excellence Award. With this award, TUM recognizes professors who demonstrate exceptional commitment and success in mentoring startup teams. Many academics support the teams during the application process and the one-year duration of an Exist startup grant. Mentoring by academics is a prerequisite for receiving one of the coveted federal grants for university spin-offs. The TUM Startup Mentor of Excellence Award is endowed with €5,000 for the chair.
