Ruhr area: Startup funding started through millions in investments!

Ruhr area: Startup funding started through millions in investments!

On July 10, 2025, the BRYCK Startup Alliance achieved significant success in the “Startup Factory Germany” competition. Loud news.rub.de The project is supported by a consortium consisting of the RAG Foundation, the Ruhr University Alliance, the Ruhr Initiativkreis and BRYCK. The federal government will support the project with up to 10 million euros, which will provide a significant boost to the region's innovation landscape.

As part of this project, the Ruhr University Bochum (RUB) will bring in the Worldfactory Start-up Center (WSC), which specializes in supporting start-ups and knowledge transfer. Prof. Dr. Günther Meschke, CEO of Worldfactory, emphasizes the positive significance of this success for the Ruhr University Alliance.

Support for start-ups in the Ruhr region

The aim of the initiative is to support start-ups, especially in the scaling phase. The focus is on challenges such as market entry and internationalization. Worldfactory acts as a central contact point for start-ups, offering support in knowledge and technology transfer as well as advice on patents.

The RUB was selected by the state government of North Rhine-Westphalia as an Excellence Startup Center (ESC). Another innovative element is the RUB makerspace in the O-Werk on Mark 51°7, which provides access to valuable transfer and start-up advice. In addition, entrepreneurship education is anchored throughout the university in order to promote entrepreneurial thinking among students.

A special measure is that students can acquire an entrepreneurship certificate, which documents their entrepreneurial skills. The individual start-up advice focuses in particular on technology-oriented (deep tech) projects. In this context, a growing network of mentors from industry is being built to provide targeted support to start-up teams.

A strong network in the Ruhr region

The BRYCK Startup Alliance highlights its importance through access to a network of over 70 companies and institutions in the region. Over 200 founding teams have been supported by Worldfactory in recent years, helping the RUB and other universities in the University Alliance Ruhr (UAR) to advance science-based innovations and transfer knowledge into the economy.

In the current assessment of the Stifterverband's start-up radar 2024, the RUB is in sixth place nationwide. This reflects the dynamic development and innovative strength of the university landscape.

An excellent environment for innovation

The Ruhr region, in which the initiative takes place, has the highest number of universities in a metropolitan region in Germany. It is home to 22 universities and 248,000 students, making it the region with the most students in Germany. There are also 150 research and innovation centers.

The high density of industry and companies, with 160,000 resident companies, as well as the great market potential for deep tech start-ups are further aspects that make the region attractive. Almost a third of Germany's “hidden champions” are based in North Rhine-Westphalia, with 100 of these world-leading companies based in the Ruhr area. This is the largest urban agglomeration in Germany and the fifth largest in the EU, with a population of over 5 million people and an ideal location for B2B tech start-ups.

In summary, the BRYCK Startup Alliance and the supporting measures of the RUB and the partners involved can be expected to provide sustainable impulses for the start-up and innovation scene in the Ruhr region.