ekipa

What ekipa does

ekipa GmbH is a Frankfurt am Main-based corporate venturing consultancy and open innovation platform founded in 2017. The company helps established organizations — DAX corporations, German Mittelstand, and hidden champions — source, validate, and integrate external startup solutions through a proprietary four-phase Corporate Venturing Operating System (Diagnose, Frame, Source, Prove) refined across 200+ projects. Underlying the service is a web-based innovation platform (app.ekipa.de) that runs structured qualification and elaboration phases, team assembly, and submission management, supported by a curated network of 30,000+ partners and solution providers matched to client criteria through structured scoring.

Ekipa sells through two engagement models. Public-Enabled Venturing delivers end-to-end innovation programs co-funded by public partners — including the Hessian Ministry, BMWK, the European Commission, ESF Plus, and the Baden-Württemberg Ministry — at 60–80% public financing, providing a low-risk entry point for organizations new to corporate venturing. Venturing as a Service (VaaS) offers continuous external innovation capacity over 6–24 months, scaling up to an embedded venturing unit with full strategic and operational ownership. Specific named programs include the Hessen Investor Summit, Venture Client Inkubator, Social Innovation Gateway, and Innovationsbeschleuniger BW, with the Hessen Investor Summit (2026) explicitly positioned as a venue connecting venture capital and venture clienting.

The company is privately held with no disclosed venture capital, private equity, or parent company involvement. It is led by Co-CEOs Justin Gemeri and Nico Heby, with Linh Phung Hoang as authorized representative. Go-to-market is consultative and direct, anchored on a free 30-minute diagnostic call, complemented by content marketing (Knowledge Hub), webinars, and event-based demand generation (Hessen Investor Summit). Logo customers include SAP, Bosch, Merck, Deutsche Bahn, Hyundai, Rolex, Sanofi, Samsung, and Swarovski; case-study clients include LBBW (repeat customer, three engagements), medac GmbH, and EnPulse Ventures. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and is structured as multi-year custom contracts.

Name

ekipa

Legal name

ekipa GmbH

Website

https://ekipa.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

ekipa GmbH is a Frankfurt-based corporate venturing consultancy and open innovation platform that helps established organizations source, validate, and integrate external startup solutions through a proprietary four-phase Operating System and a 30,000+-partner network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Corporate Venturing and Open Innovation Consulting

NAICS

Process, Physical Distribution, and Logistics Consulting Services (541614)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Infrastructure & Project Finance Advisory (BPAHADAO)

akta.pro secondary industries

Incentives, Grants & Program Administration (Auctions, Tenders, IRA/ITC/PTC Advisory) (EUAMAAAJ), Program & Project Implementation (TA Delivery) (BPADAEAA), Institutional Capacity Building & Training (Workforce/Systems Strengthening) (BPADAEAC)

Keywords

• Corporate venturing services
• Open innovation consulting
• Venture clienting programs
• Startup corporate matching
• External innovation management

Headquarters

HQ city

Frankfurt

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Venturing as a Service (VaaS): Continuous external venturing capacity engagement model for companies needing ongoing external innovation capabilities without building in-house capacities. Ranges from on-demand scouting to embedded venturing unit with full strategic and operational ownership over 6-24 month engagements.
2. Public-Enabled Venturing Programs: Co-funded programs where public partners (60-80%) and companies (20-40%) share costs. Company serves as project trustee managing programs for government entities including Hessian Ministry, BMWK, European Union, and Baden-Württemberg Ministry.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

ekipa operates a Corporate Venturing consultancy that helps established organizations integrate external innovations from startups and innovators, supported by a four-phase Operating System (Diagnose, Frame, Source, Prove) and a curated network of 30,000+ partners. The company delivers two engagement models: Public-Enabled Venturing, which runs co-funded 4–6 month programs administered on behalf of public ministries, and Venturing as a Service, which provides continuous external innovation capacity over 6–24 month engagements. Supporting delivery is the Open Innovation Platform (app.ekipa.de), where organizations publish challenges and innovators submit solutions through structured qualification and elaboration phases.

Product overview

ekipa operates as a Corporate Venturing consultancy and open innovation platform. The core offering consists of two engagement models: Public-Enabled Venturing (co-funded programs for organizations entering corporate venturing) and Venturing as a Service (continuous external innovation capacity). These services are delivered through ekipa's four-phase Corporate Venturing Operating System methodology. Specific programs include the Hessen Innovation Summit, Venture Client Inkubator, Social Innovation Gateway, Innovationsbeschleuniger BW, and the Hessen Investor Summit. Supporting the services is an Open Innovation Platform (app.ekipa.de) where innovators can register, form teams, collaborate on challenges, and submit solutions. The company also offers a Knowledge Hub for educational content. ekipa does not offer traditional software products with APIs or SDKs; rather, it provides consulting-led programs structured around its proprietary methodology.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Public-Enabled Venturing Low-risk entry program into corporate venturing for organizations, delivered end-to-end and co-funded by public partners including the Hessen Ministry of Economics, BMWK, and the European Union. Reduces budget requirements with no application burden for participating organizations, runs on defined 4-6 month timelines with clear decision milestones, and runs from challenge definition to validated pilot.
• Venturing as a Service (VaaS) Continuous external innovation capacity engagement for companies needing ongoing venturing capabilities without building fixed in-house teams. ekipa integrates as an operational extension providing continuous market screening, on-demand solution scouting, and capability-building across 6-24 month engagements. At the top of the range, VaaS becomes an embedded venturing unit with full strategic and operational ownership.
• Hessen Innovation Summit Program format that systematically connects Venture Clienting and Venture Capital, enabling targeted matches between startups, corporates, and investors based on validated applications. Reported results include 37 finalist startups, 26 investors, and 308 1:1 meetings.
• Venture Client Inkubator Venture Clienting program for corporates, SMEs, and mid-sized companies to structure external solution testing and make informed pilot decisions. Open to companies across Germany with a European startup pool. Reported results include 34 finalist startups, 10 corporate partners, and 21 realized cooperations.
• Social Innovation Gateway Impact Venture Clienting program creating a protected framework for simultaneously validating economic viability and societal impact of external solutions. Funded by BMWK and ESF Plus.
• Innovationsbeschleuniger BW Program enabling companies from Baden-Württemberg to try startup partnerships as a pragmatic approach with low resource burden, clear rules, and measurable implementation logic. Funded by the Ministry for Economic Affairs, Handcraft and Tourism Baden-Württemberg.

Quantifiable outcome

• >75% integration rate of qualified solutions moving into partnerships
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• TechQuartier / Impact FestivalminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2026Partnership creating ticket bundle between Hessen Investor Summit and Impact Festival. Summit participants receive 30% discount on Impact Festival tickets, connecting Frankfurt innovation ecosystem events.
• Hessisches Ministerium für Wirtschaft, Energie, Verkehr, Wohnen und ländlichen RaumcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKey public funding partner supporting Public-Enabled Venturing programs. Hessian Ministry co-funds innovation programs enabling companies to test external innovations with 60-80% public financing.
• Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Klimaschutz (BMWK)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFederal Ministry providing co-funding for public-enabled venturing programs at national level, supporting innovation initiatives across Germany.
• Europäische KommissioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEU-level funding partner supporting European innovation ecosystems and cross-border venturing programs.
• Europäischer Sozialfonds Plus (ESF+)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean Social Fund Plus providing funding for Social Innovation Gateway program supporting impact venture clienting.
• Ministerium für Wirtschaft, Handwerk und Tourismus Baden-WürttembergcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional ministry funding Innovationsbeschleuniger BW program, enabling SME access to venture clienting methodology.
• Stadt KölnminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMunicipal partner supporting public-enabled venturing initiatives in Cologne region.
• EWG EssenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEconomic development agency partner supporting innovation initiatives in Essen region.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves2 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• innosabi: Germany-based innovation management software and services provider that helps corporates run open innovation challenges, scout startups, and manage venture clienting — directly comparable to ekipa's challenge-based open innovation model.
• HYPE Innovation: Provider of innovation management software plus consulting for idea management, technology scouting, and corporate-startup collaboration, closely matching ekipa's combined platform-plus-services approach.
• Wazoku (CrowdWorx): Open innovation and crowd-sourcing platform used by corporates to run challenge-driven innovation programs, similar to ekipa's challenge publication and structured submission workflow.
• Plug and Play Tech Center: Global corporate innovation platform running accelerator programs and connecting startups with large enterprises — comparable to ekipa's curated matching and corporate-startup engagement programs.
• NUMA: Corporate innovation accelerator with programs for enterprises to engage startups and build innovation capabilities, mirroring ekipa's venture clienting programs and structured methodology.
• Wayra (Telefónica): Corporate innovation hub by Telefónica running open innovation challenges and accelerator programs — a direct analog to ekipa's challenge-driven corporate venturing model, especially in the DACH market.
• Innovation Endeavors: Venture firm and corporate innovation partner focused on deep-tech and corporate-startup collaboration, comparable in its mission to operationalize corporate-startup engagement for large enterprises.
• Allianz X: Corporate venture and innovation arm of Allianz, providing venture clienting and startup engagement — comparable to ekipa's enterprise-side corporate venturing services, particularly in financial services.

Broad incumbents

• KPMG Powered Enterprise / Innovation Practice: Global professional services firm with a corporate innovation and venturing practice that competes for the same enterprise budgets as ekipa, though as part of a much broader advisory portfolio.
• Techstars: Global accelerator network running corporate-sponsored programs that pair startups with enterprise partners — operates at much larger scale but overlaps with ekipa's venture clienting and matching offerings.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ekipa-crowd

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ekipa