Paluno

What Paluno does

Paluno — the Ruhr Institute for Software Technology — is a research institute embedded in the Faculty of Computer Science at the University of Duisburg-Essen in Essen, Germany, and one of the largest research institutes for software engineering in the country. It is organized across 10 working groups covering systems security, trustworthy systems, business informatics and software engineering, specification of software systems, software engineering for mobile applications, networked embedded systems, intelligent embedded systems, human-computer interaction, distributed systems, and software systems engineering, with a faculty of approximately 12 named professors and over 100 researchers in total. Active research thrusts include WebAssembly runtime security (the Bento fine-grained memory isolation solution presented at ACM WWW 2026), GenAI-augmented software engineering (a structured research roadmap published in ACM TOSEM and presented as Journal-First at FSE 2026), smart contract security, trusted computing, and human-AI interaction.

The institute funds itself primarily through public research grants from German state, federal (DFG, including the CASA Cluster of Excellence, CROSSING CRC, and Nano Security SPP), and European sources (EU framework programs and an ERC Starting Grant on Secure Execution of Smart Contracts). It supplements this with industry-funded collaborative R&D, consulting, feasibility studies, and professional training/coaching delivered through programs such as CampusLab. A portfolio of seven named spin-offs — CampusLab, GenerIO, Interaction Room, LocosLab, ModLab, SeeMee, and TamedAI — provides a commercialization channel for research outputs in enterprise AI (TamedAI), generative-AI-based texture creation (GenerIO), pragmatic modeling (Interaction Room, SeeMee), location-based services (LocosLab), professional education (CampusLab), and moderation techniques (ModLab). Paluno does not operate commercial pricing, is not publicly traded, and has no external venture or private-equity ownership; ownership and funding flow through the state of North Rhine-Westphalia via the University of Duisburg-Essen.

Name

Paluno

Legal name

paluno – The Ruhr Institute for Software Technology

Website

https://paluno.uni-due.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Paluno is a software engineering research institute at the University of Duisburg-Essen in Germany, running 10 working groups and 100+ researchers across security, GenAI-augmented SE, and HCI, serving industry and public funders through grants, collaborations, and spin-offs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Essen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Public Research Funding: Core funding from University of Duisburg-Essen and government research grants including DFG, EU, and state-level funding programs.
2. Industry Research Collaborations: Third-party funded research projects with industry partners including consulting services, feasibility studies, and collaborative R&D projects.
3. Professional Services and Training: Further education, coaching, and professional training services for industry in topics such as agility, industrial software development, digitization, security, and usability.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Paluno is a university research institute at the University of Duisburg-Essen conducting fundamental and applied research in software engineering across 10 working groups, covering innovative software systems, digital key technologies, information and systems security, and human-computer interaction. It delivers its offerings through industry research collaborations, funded R&D projects, professional training, and technology transfer via spin-off companies and tools such as GenerIO, TamedAI, Interaction Room, LocosLab, and CampusLab.

Product overview

Paluno is a research institute at the University of Duisburg-Essen offering a portfolio of spin-off tools and professional services. Its spin-offs include GenerIO (AI-powered texture creation), TamedAI (enterprise AI platform), Interaction Room (project modeling tool), SeeMee (socio-technical modeling), LocosLab (location-based services), CampusLab (professional education), and ModLab (moderation techniques laboratory). The service portfolio includes scientific consulting, feasibility studies, further education coaching, software prototype development, and funded project partnership support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CampusLab: A program developed by paluno for continuing professional qualification of employees in practical IT topics. CampusLab provides systematic knowledge transfer through customized course programs tailored to roles and phases in the software process.
• GenerIO
• Interaction Room
• LocosLab
• ModLab
• SeeMee
• TamedAI

Products and services

• CampusLab

Quantifiable outcome

• Research presented at top-tier conferences including ACM WWW 2026, ACM CCS, IEEE S&P, USENIX Security, FSE 2026
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability6 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• DFG Exzellenzcluster CASAcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Collaborative research partnership in the DFG Cluster of Excellence Cyber Security in the Age of Large-Scale Adversaries, focusing on advanced systems security research.
• DFG Sonderbereich CROSSINGcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026DFG Collaborative Research Center CROSSING focusing on cryptographic and security research.
• DFG Schwerpunktprogramm Nano SecuritycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026DFG Priority Program on Nano Security addressing security challenges in nano-scale systems.
• ERC Starting Grant CONSECcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026European Research Council Starting Grant project on Secure Execution of Smart Contracts, led by Prof. Lucas Davi.
• Inside - Intelligent Digital Systems AssociationminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026European industry association for Intelligent Digital Systems with 200+ members. Paluno represents University of Duisburg-Essen as member. Contact: Prof. Dr. Klaus Pohl.
• BDVA - Big Data Value AssociationminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026European public-private partnership on Big Data. Paluno is full member and expert member in Technical Board. Contributed to Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA). Contacts: Prof. Dr. Klaus Pohl, Dr. Andreas Metzger.
• CHIPS JU - Chips Joint UndertakingminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026EU public-private partnership for research, development and innovation in key enabling technologies for Europe's digital economy. Successor to KDT JU programme.
• EWICS - European Workshop on Industrial Computer SystemsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026European workshop promoting reliable, safe, and secure industrial computer systems through education, information exchange, and standards development. Contact: Prof. Dr. Maritta Heisel.
• IREB - International Requirements Engineering BoardminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026International organization providing certification model and syllabi for requirements engineering. Contact: Prof. Dr. Klaus Pohl.
• EurographicsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Europe-wide professional Computer Graphics association. Contact: Prof. Dr. Fabian Beck.
• NESSI - Networked European Software and Services InitiativeminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026European Technology Platform addressing Cloud Computing, Software, Services, Big Data and Cyber-Physical Systems. Contacts: Prof. Dr. Klaus Pohl, Dr. Andreas Metzger.
• CampusLabminorOthers · 1 January 2026Spin-off from paluno developing programs for professional continuing education in IT topics, focusing on knowledge transfer through customized course programs.
• GenerIOminorOthers · 1 January 2026Startup founded from paluno's human-computer interaction group, providing AI-powered tool for artists to create and edit digital textures for video games, films, VR, and print media.
• Interaction Room GmbHminorOthers · 1 January 2026Spin-off company providing pragmatic modelling tools to create common understanding among IT project participants.
• LocosLabminorOthers · 1 January 2026Spin-off from 2012 specializing in location-based services, developing cost-effective indoor and outdoor localization systems using standardized hardware.
• TamedAI GmbHminorOthers · 1 January 2026Enterprise AI company developing productive AI components for business customers using preconfigured models on their platform for efficient AI model management.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Market position

Competitive moat4 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/university-of-duisburg-essen

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 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 Paluno