Marburg: 2.3 million euros for innovative startup development!

Marburg: 2.3 million euros for innovative startup development!

The Philipps University of Marburg recently received funding of 2.3 million euros from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). This significant funding supports the “From Research to Prototypes” project, which is led by the Marburg Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (MAFEX). The Hessian Science Minister Timon Gremmels presented the funding decision and emphasized the relevance of the project, which is committed to the early identification of start-up potential from science.

The main goal is to bridge the gap between the original idea and a marketable product. This phase, often referred to as the “Valley of Death”, represents one of the biggest challenges for founders. To achieve this, special laboratories and work rooms are set up that are equipped with modern technology and enable the development and testing of prototypes.

Support targeted according to disciplines

Another important aspect of the project is the creation of methodological support offers. These offers are aimed at both technology-oriented and humanities and social science founders and are intended to promote the diversity of start-ups. The MAFEX approach aims to expand the transfer of know-how to other university locations in Hesse as a model project.

Philipps University will contribute around 2.7 million euros from its own resources to the project, while the city of Marburg will invest an additional 675,000 euros. The total volume of the project is therefore around 5.7 million euros. The funding is provided by the Economic and Infrastructure Bank Hessen (WIBank).

connection with national competition

The project is directly related to the excellence proposal of the universities in Central Hesse, which are competing for funding as part of the “Startup Factories” competition of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection. It is expected that a jury decision will be made in June 2025 on possible funding of up to 10 million euros for the “StartMiUp” project. The aim of this competition is to establish up to 10 startup factories as internationally visible lighthouses.

The initiative not only aims to promote start-ups, but also to improve start-ups' access to private investors and the established economy. The aim is to achieve a significant increase in the number and quality of innovative, knowledge-based and growth-oriented spin-offs. Long-term financing of these start-up initiatives is also sought through the mobilization of private funds to create sustainable structures.

The ERDF aims to reduce economic and social inequalities between regions. In the funding period 2021 to 2027, Hesse has a total of around 249 million euros in ERDF funds available to support innovative projects such as “From Research to Prototypes” and to revitalize the startup scene in the region.