AI Founder Fellowship
Empowering AI Researchers to create Deep-Tech Startups
Through this funding programme, MISSION KI provides a structured environment in which doctoral candidates can turn their AI-related research into viable start-up ventures while still completing their studies.
Since February 2025, the 11 fellows of the inaugural cohort have been working intensively on transforming their AI research into market-ready start-ups, having prevailed over a large field of applicants in a multi-stage selection process.
GREEN-DNN
Development of sustainable solutions for energy-efficient AI models in 5G/6G networks through innovative in-network computing.
Ebrahimi Zahra | Ruhr Universität Bochum
Tinytrace.ai
Dialog-based platform for detecting and verifying AI-generated content for businesses.
Daniel Röder (CEO, left) | DFKI
Premtim Sahitaj (CTO, right), Jiaao Li | TU Berlin
Aproxymade
AI-optimized server performance for the next generation of AI applications.
Markus Sosnowski | TU München
decyte
AI-based early detection of Tumor diseases through individual "immune fingerprints.
Hanna Roetschke, Julia Stachowiak | Universität Göttingen
Kauzen
AI-based error detection for more efficient and cost-effective production processes.
Dr. Lukas Kaupp, Alexander Zender, Alexander Scharfenberg | Hochschule Darmstadt
VoxFocus
Astrophysics-inspired algorithms for precise speech recognition in noise-intensive industrial environments.
David Maksimović | Universität Mainz
From Research to Startup in 9 Months
The AI Founder Fellowship supports AI talent from research through to company formation. The first phase focuses on developing and validating business models: researchers create business models and test their solutions with end users and industry partners. The subsequent phase involves the practical development of business models and support structures. The final phase prepares for market entry: teams refine their presentations, receive feedback, and present their concepts to the public.
Tech Coach
Prof. Dr. Matthias Nießner
Professor for Visual Computing | TUM
To efficiently transform research approaches into market-ready solutions, the fellows receive individual operational support. Prof. Dr. Matthias Nießner, Professor for Visual Computing at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and co-founder of the AI startup Synthesia, coaches the technical development aspects of the founding projects.
"The barriers to entrepreneurship in Germany are high. With the AI Founder Fellowship, we want to support researchers on their path to founding a company. Our goal is to keep AI expertise in the country. I am very pleased to work with the fellows and coach them on the technical aspects of their founding projects."
Venture Developer
During the program, the fellows are accompanied by a team of experienced Venture Developers. As experts in building digital companies, Venture Developers provide support particularly with the operational implementation of fellowship projects.
Mentoring Network
Additionally, mentors support the fellows as sparring partners with specific expertise from various domains and industry contexts. They accompany the entrepreneurs in specialized subject areas such as Venture Capital, Human Resources, and Prototyping. In doing so, they not only share their knowledge but also open doors to important partners and potential customers.
Antonie Leboyer, Managing Director @ TUM Venture Labs
Antoine unterstützt Technologie-Startups beim Aufbau nachhaltiger Geschäftsmodelle und der Sicherung von Wachstumskapital. Mit seiner Erfahrung aus über 100 Deep-Tech-Investments steht er bei Finanzierungsfragen zur Verfügung.
Laurenz Lankes, Investor @ Merantix Capital
Als erfahrener Venture Capitalist mit Fokus auf KI-Technologien hat Laurenz zahlreiche Startups begleitet und kennt die Bedarfe innovativer KI-Startups.
Felix Christanell, Associate Partner @ Stryber
Felix berät als Venture-Stratege Technologieunternehmen bei der Entwicklung und Skalierung digitaler Geschäftsmodelle. Seine Expertise in der Entwicklung von Wachstumsstrategien macht ihn zu einem wertvollen Sparringspartner für unsere Fellows.
Manuel Hösle, Tech-Transfer Expert @ Fraunhofer Venture
Manuel verfügt über umfangreiche Erfahrung in der Überführung wissenschaftlicher Innovationen in marktfähige Produkte. Er unterstützt unsere Fellows in Fragen zu Technologie-Transfer von Forschungsergebnissen.
Philip Hutchinson, Senior AI Strategist @ appliedAI
Philip treibt bei appliedAI die Entwicklung und Implementierung von KI-Strategien voran. Seine praktische Erfahrung in der Umsetzung von KI-Projekten macht ihn zu einem wichtigen Ratgeber für unsere Teams.
Tobias Kehl, Project Lead @ hessian.AI
Tobias gestaltet bei hessian.AI die Zukunft der KI-Innovation. Er unterstützt unsere Fellows bei der Entwicklung von Kooperationsmodellen mit etablierten Unternehmen.
Florian Schütz, Managing Director @ KI Park
Florian vernetzt im KI Park innovative Startups mit industriellen Partnern. Schwerpunkte: Technologietransfer, KI-Ökosysteme und Ökosystem Engagement, Kollaboration und Co-Innovation bspw. mit Corporates, Bedarfsorientierung/Industry-Needs.
Testimonials
Daniel Röder
"The AI Founder Fellowship was instrumental in transforming a rough research idea into a validated business case that we're now excited to bring to market, something that wouldn’t have happened without the program. The combination of expert guidance from the venture developers and the dedication of the MISSION KI team was truly invaluable. The venture developers offered not just theoretical and practical insights, but also meaningful life lessons, while the Mission KI team went above and beyond to make the experience as impactful as possible. Having been part of other initiatives, I’ve rarely seen this level of commitment, and for that reason, I would absolutely recommend the Fellowship to other researchers looking to turn their ideas into real-world ventures."
Dr. Lukas Kaupp
"Hands down the best program to launch a startup in Germany and bring research into the real world. MISSION KI offers outstanding support from dedicated staff, venture developers, and designers. You also connect with potential investors early on. We thought we were well-prepared—but we learned so much more. It’s an inspiring environment with great mentors, supportive peers, and other startups to learn from. The unique spirit of this federally funded program is remarkable. What began as a way to survive the “valley of death” became the most promising startup program we’ve seen in Germany. Huge thanks to the MISSION KI team and everyone behind the scenes. Keep it going—this could become a key pillar for research transfer in Germany!"
Strong Partners
A strong ecosystem of science, technology transfer, incubation, and venture capital complements the offerings of the AI Founder Fellowship.
