Innovative founders from Clausthal are developing fireproof future technologies!

Innovative founders from Clausthal are developing fireproof future technologies!

In a significant development for technology-focused startups, the team at “Warden Robotics” has been selected as a recipient of the EXIST startup grant. This funding program from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWE) aims to support technology-oriented and knowledge-based start-ups from universities and research institutions. In this case, the scholarship will be used to further develop the start-up's innovative approaches to fire prevention.

The founders, Lucas Dehmel and Lukas Bartenstein from Ostfalia University and Konstantin von Haugwitz and Hans-Jörg Göschl from Clausthal University of Technology, focus on developing technologies that integrate both ground robots and drones for fire detection and firefighting. Particularly noteworthy is their prototype, the “FireBot”, an autonomous fire extinguishing robot, with which they won the TUniCorn ideas competition 2023. This commitment and the awards won illustrate the start-up’s potential.

Focus on innovative firefighting technologies

The EXIST start-up scholarship, which begins in autumn 2025, supports “Warden Robotics” with a total of 98,000 euros for one year. This financial support will be used to create a business plan and prepare to set up a company. To qualify for this scholarship, the business idea, as defined in the program, must be innovative, technology-oriented and have significant unique selling points. Services can also be funded under these criteria, which supports the team in its development.

The current focus is on improving the sensor unit for early fire detection, which makes it possible to monitor recycling plants from a greater distance. This sensor unit can be used with drones to initiate targeted firefighting measures. In addition, the team is in the process of generating data sets to train artificial intelligence for fire detection, which should increase the efficiency and accuracy of the systems.

Support from EXIST and ESF Plus

EXIST is not only funded by the BMWE, but also by the European Union through the European Social Fund Plus (ESF Plus). The aim of the program is to improve the start-up climate at universities and non-university research institutions and to increase the number and success of technology-oriented and knowledge-based company start-ups. This illustrates the comprehensive support that the EXIST program offers both for founders and universities in order to be able to realize innovative start-up ideas.

In addition to the technical progress, Bartenstein's team is already showing the first pilot customers who are ready to carry out tests and optimizations in real environments. This underlines the desire to ensure reliable fire protection in recycling companies and thus solve an important problem within the circular economy.

Overall, it shows that “Warden Robotics” with its innovative approach and the support of the EXIST start-up grant is on a promising path to achieving significant improvements in the area of ​​fire protection. The approach not only promotes entrepreneurship but also contributes to safety in the industry.