What Stiftung Charite does

Stiftung Charité is an independent, private-law charitable foundation (Stiftung bürgerlichen Rechts) established in Germany, with its registered office in Bad Homburg v. d. Höhe and a Berlin head office at Novalisstraße 10. Founded by Johanna Quandt, the foundation's stated mission is to contribute decisively to establishing Berlin as a globally leading location in life sciences, primarily by supporting Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin and partner institutions including the Berlin Institute of Health (BIH), the German Heart Center of Charité (DHZC), and the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC). It is governed by a Board of Trustees (Stiftungsrat) and an Executive Board (Vorstand), with Dr. Jörg Appelhans as Chair of the Executive Board and Jan Eder as Chair of the Board of Trustees as of May 2025.

The foundation operates three program pillars: Innovationsförderung (Innovation Funding, including the EUR 100,000 Max Rubner Award and project/event funding up to EUR 10,000), Wissenschaftsförderung (Research Funding, including Clinical Fellows, Visiting Fellows, the Clinician Scientist Program, and Networking Events up to EUR 20,000), and Open Life Science (including the science x media Tandem Program with up to EUR 135,000 per tandem). The foundation supports roughly 50 new grantees per year on a three-year average (2022-2024), with total annual funding volume measured in millions of euros. The September 2025 launch of the xFound Online Portal digitized the application workflow. Output metrics include approximately 80 clinical leaders supported over 10 years through the Clinical Fellows Program, 16 grantees among Clarivate's Highly Cited Researchers 2025, and 51 Clinical Fellows alumni continuing as senior physicians at Charité.

As a non-profit entity exempt from corporate and trade tax and supervised by Regierungspräsidium Darmstadt, Stiftung Charité does not generate commercial revenue. Its business model is grant-making: an endowment produces investment income that funds annual distributions to researchers, clinicians, and science communication projects. The customer base is institutional (Charité and partner life sciences organizations) and individual (senior physicians, researchers, Visiting Fellows, Clinician Scientists, and science x media tandems). The foundation operates primarily in Germany with an international component through the Visiting Fellows program, which funds renowned researchers from abroad to collaborate with Berlin-based hosts.

Name

Stiftung Charite

Legal name

Stiftung Charité

Website

https://stiftung-charite.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Stiftung Charité is an independent German charitable foundation that funds life sciences research and innovation at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin and partner institutions in Berlin, supporting roughly 50 new grantees annually across 12 funding programs in innovation, research, and open life science.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Charitable Research Funding

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132), Voluntary Health Organizations (813212)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Health & Medical Research Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAL), Research & Science Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAI)

Keywords

• Life sciences funding
• Research grants
• Biomedical research support
• Science communication funding
• Clinician scientist programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Grants and funding disbursements, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Stiftung Charité is an independent, non-profit charitable foundation that provides grant funding and financial support to life sciences research at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin and partner institutions in Berlin. It operates 12+ funding programs across three focus areas (Innovation Funding, Research Funding, and Open Life Science), supporting senior physicians, visiting researchers, clinician scientists, and science communication projects, while also organizing its own events such as the Charité Management Lectures.

Product overview

Stiftung Charité operates as a foundation providing funding programs for life sciences research at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin and partner institutions. The foundation offers three main focus areas: Innovationsförderung (Innovation Funding), Wissenschaftsförderung (Research Funding), and Open Life Science. Key programs include the Max Rubner Award, Clinical Fellows, Visiting Fellows, Clinician Scientists Program, science x media Tandem Program, Project and Event Funding, and Networking Events. The xFound Online Portal provides digital infrastructure for application submission. The foundation also organizes its own events including Charité Management Lectures and Welcome Receptions. Total funding scope is in the millions per year across 12+ programs and initiatives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Innovationsförderung (Innovation Funding) Funding program supporting innovation initiatives at Charité and partner life sciences institutions in Berlin, including the Max Rubner Award and project and event funding.
• Wissenschaftsförderung (Research Funding) Research funding program area including Clinical Fellows, Visiting Fellows, Clinician Scientists, and Networking Events for researchers at Charité and partner institutions.
• Open Life Science Program area focused on making life sciences more comprehensible, accessible, and participatory, including the science x media Tandem Program and Wisskomm@Charité.
• Max Rubner Award Innovation award endowed with EUR 100,000 promoting implementation of innovative ideas at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin.
• Clinical Fellows Funding for experienced and clinically active senior physicians to pursue practice-oriented projects in continuing education, clinical observerships, or transfer of clinical knowledge.
• Visiting Fellows Program supporting renowned researchers from abroad or elsewhere in Germany to develop collaborative research projects with hosts at Charité.
• science x media Tandem Program Program pairing life scientists with media professionals for collaborative science communication projects, with funding up to EUR 135,000 per tandem.
• Project and Event Funding Low-threshold funding up to EUR 10,000 for clearly defined projects and events at Charité.
• Networking Events Funding for scientific networking events up to EUR 20,000, open to previous and current Stiftung Charité grantees.
• xFound Online Portal Digital foundation portal for submitting funding applications and accessing information about the application process, featuring responsive design.

Quantifiable outcome

• Approximately 80 clinical leaders implemented projects through Clinical Fellows Program over 10 years
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers16 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Charité – Universitätsmedizin BerlincoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary beneficiary of Stiftung Charité's funding programs. The foundation supports all areas of Charité from research and teaching to healthcare provision and knowledge and technology transfer. The foundation's registered office is in Bad Homburg while the head office is in Berlin supporting Charité's mission to establish Berlin as a globally leading life sciences location.
• Berlin Institute of Health at Charité (BIH)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBIH is a partially independent organizational unit of Charité and an eligible applicant for Stiftung Charité funding programs. The foundation co-initiated, sponsors, and cooperates with the Berlin Clinician Scientist Program administered by BIH and Charité.
• German Heart Center of Charité (DHZC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDHZC is a partially independent organizational unit of Charité eligible for Stiftung Charité funding programs. Researchers from DHZC participate in various funding programs including Visiting Fellows and science x media tandems.
• Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMDC researchers are eligible to participate in certain Stiftung Charité funding programs, particularly the science x media Tandem Program. Prof. Dr. Maike Sander, former Visiting Fellow, now leads the Max-Delbrück-Centrum.
• QUEST Center for Responsible ResearchminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStiftung Charité refers applicants to QUEST Center for Open Data, Open Access, and scientific rigor training opportunities, as these are not central to its own Open Life Science approach.
• TransVer NetworkminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTransVer network for intercultural opening of Charité was initially funded by Stiftung Charité and offers psychosocial support to migrants and refugees since 2016. The foundation supported development of a web-based emergency counselling tool for Ukrainian refugees through this network.

Scale indicators18 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Wellcome Trust: UK-based independent charitable foundation primarily funding biomedical research and the broader science ecosystem. Highly comparable to Stiftung Charité as a private, endowment-funded life sciences research grantmaker with global reach and prestigious fellowship programmes.
• Howard Hughes Medical Institute: US biomedical research organisation supporting individual scientists and research institutions. Comparable in funding model (endowment-driven support of elite investigators) and mission focus on life sciences, though larger and US-based.
• Boehringer Ingelheim Stiftung: German non-profit foundation funding biomedical research, particularly in inflammation, ageing, and translational medicine. Most direct domestic peer to Stiftung Charité given shared geography, focus on biomedical science, and grantmaking structure.
• VolkswagenStiftung: Large German private foundation funding research and science across multiple disciplines. Comparable as a major German grantmaking foundation with research-focused programmes and competitive fellowship-style awards.
• Else Kröner-Fresenius-Stiftung: Germany's largest foundation dedicated to medical research and humanitarian medical projects. Directly comparable in funding medical research, supporting clinician-scientist pathways, and providing innovation awards.
• Fritz Thyssen Stiftung: German private foundation promoting research and scientific work across humanities, social sciences and biomedicine. Comparable as a domestic German grantmaking foundation funding science with competitive award programmes.

Broad incumbents

• Robert Bosch Stiftung: One of Germany's largest foundations, with a broader portfolio spanning science, health, education, and society. Overlaps with Stiftung Charité on health research funding but operates at much larger scale across multiple mission areas.
• Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI): Philanthropic organisation funding biomedical science, education and social justice. Comparable in life sciences focus and use of technology platforms to scale research community, but operates globally and at substantially larger scale.

Emerging players

• Wellcome Leap: US-based global health research programme funded by Wellcome. Comparable as a science-funding intermediary backing high-risk, high-reward biomedical research projects with measurable milestones, though with a more venture-style operating model.

Others

• Berlin Institute of Health at Charité (BIH): Translational research unit within Charité and a core co-funder partner of Stiftung Charité's Clinician Scientist Program. Included as an ecosystem participant rather than a direct competitor, since BIH itself receives Stiftung Charité funding.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCgr5VdV1KYv8KJmKsTLQSiA
• LinkedInde.linkedin.com/company/stiftungcharite
• Instagraminstagram.com/stiftungcharite
• Xx.com/stiftungcharite

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Stiftung Charite