Elektrotechnisches Institut (ETI), KIT

What Elektrotechnisches Institut (ETI), KIT does

The Elektrotechnisches Institut (ETI) at the Karlsruher Institut für Technologie (KIT) is a university research institute founded in 1895 and located in Karlsruhe, Germany. ETI conducts interdisciplinary research across power electronics, electrical machines, drive control, and energy storage systems, with approximately 70 researchers working to improve power density, functionality, and energy efficiency. Its core technical assets include self-developed test benches and specialized equipment for prototype construction in power converter systems, motor testing stands, and semiconductor characterization.

ETI does not sell commercial products. Its outputs consist of peer-reviewed publications, doctoral and habilitation dissertations (with records dating from 1902 to present), patentable research, and trained postgraduates. Revenue, in the conventional sense, is not generated; funding flows from public research grants, government programs, and collaborative projects with industry partners and public project sponsors in the automotive and energy sectors. Its go-to-market is therefore research-collaboration-led rather than sales-led, and dissemination occurs via academic publications, conferences (e.g., PCIM 2026), organized events (PELSS 2026, OpenEMS-Hackathon), and direct industry engagement rather than through commercial channels. ETI sits within KIT, which is part of the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centers, making it a government/state-affiliated research entity rather than a privately owned operating company.

Name

Elektrotechnisches Institut (ETI), KIT

Legal name

Elektrotechnisches Institut (ETI), KIT

Website

https://eti.kit.edu

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Elektrotechnisches Institut (ETI) is a KIT university research institute of about 70 researchers conducting interdisciplinary work in power electronics, electrical machines, drive control, and energy storage systems for industry partners and public sponsors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

University Research Services (Power Electronics & Electrical Machines)

NAICS

Engineering Services (54133), Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (541690), Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413), Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (54169)

SIC

Services-Engineering Services (8711), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700), Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)

akta.pro primary industry

Engineering & Technology Institutes (Comprehensive) (EDAHAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Testing, Inspection, Certification & Commissioning (TICx) Technical Services (BPAHAIAL)

Keywords

• Power electronics research
• Electrical machines engineering
• Drive control systems
• Energy storage research
• University research institute

Headquarters

HQ city

Karlsruhe

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: ETI operates as a university research institute funded through public research grants, government funding programs, and industry collaborations. As part of KIT (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology), it receives institutional funding and processes projects in partnership with public project sponsors.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

The Elektrotechnisches Institut (ETI) is a university research institute at KIT that conducts interdisciplinary research in power electronics, electrical machines, drive control, and energy storage systems. It processes diverse research projects in close collaboration with industry partners and public project sponsors, develops innovative solutions and concepts for future applications, and offers versatile self-developed test bench infrastructure for prototype construction and testing. It also delivers university teaching, lectures, exercises, and student research supervision (Bachelor/Master theses, research internships).

Product overview

Elektrotechnisches Institut (ETI) at KIT is a university research institute conducting research in power electronics, electrical machines, drive control, and energy storage systems. The institute does not offer commercial products; its outputs consist of research publications, doctoral dissertations, industry collaboration projects, and student education. Key research areas include power converter systems, electric machine design and optimization, battery and energy storage systems, and grid integration technologies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Collaborative Research Projects with Industry Partners Interdisciplinary research collaborations with companies in automotive, energy, and industrial sectors covering power electronics systems, electrical machines, drive control, and energy storage. Delivered through joint projects that build and characterize prototypes using self-developed test benches for application-specific investigations.
• Publicly Funded Research Projects
• Test Bench and Prototype Infrastructure Services
• University Teaching: Lectures and Exercises
• Student Research Supervision (Bachelor/Master Theses and Research Internships)

Quantifiable outcome

• Research outputs include dissertations and publications dating from 1902 to present, demonstrating long-term research excellence

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability4 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• European Center for Power Electronics (ECPE)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 June 2026ETI participated in the PCIM 2026 Students Day organized by ECPE in Nürnberg, demonstrating collaboration in student education and industry networking.
• KIT-Fakultät für Elektrotechnik und InformationstechnikcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 April 2026The KIT Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology covered travel costs for students attending the PCIM 2026 Students Day.
• Industrie (Industry Partners)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerETI processes diverse projects in close connection with industry partners, developing innovative solutions and concepts for future applications in power electronics and energy storage systems.
• Öffentliche Projektträger (Public Project Sponsors)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates with public funding bodies on research projects in power electronics, electrical machines, and energy storage systems.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• Imperial College London — Power Electronics Group: University research group in the UK with overlapping focus on power electronics and drives. Comparable in academic research mission, though with a smaller and more UK-focused footprint than ETI's German industry network.
• University of Nottingham — Power Electronics, Machines and Control Group: UK university research group covering power electronics, machines, and control. Comparable academic research remit to ETI but with a less industry-central geographic footprint in continental Europe.

Others

• European Center for Power Electronics (ECPE): European industry-academia network for power electronics. ETI is already engaged with ECPE (PCIM Students Day), making it a peer ecosystem partner rather than a direct competitor.

Regional players

• Vienna University of Technology — Institute of Energy Systems and Electrical Drives (IEAN): Austrian university institute focused on electrical drives and energy systems. Comparable in research scope to ETI but operating primarily in Austria rather than Germany.

Direct peers

• ETH Zurich — Power Electronics Laboratory (PEL): Academic research laboratory at ETH Zurich conducting fundamental and applied research in power electronics and energy systems. Directly comparable to ETI in research scope and industry engagement.
• RWTH Aachen — Institute for Power Electronics and Electrical Drives (ISEA): University research institute at RWTH Aachen conducting research on power electronics, electrical drives, and storage systems. Highly comparable in mission, scale, and German public-university research context to ETI.
• Aalborg University — Department of Energy Technology: Internationally recognized university research department focused on power electronics, electrical machines, and renewable energy systems. Comparable to ETI in its research focus and academic/industry collaboration model.
• TU Dresden — Institute of Electrical Power Systems and High Voltage Engineering: Technical university research institute in Germany covering power electronics, drives, and energy systems. Closely comparable profile to ETI as a publicly funded university research group in the German electrical-engineering ecosystem.
• Technical University of Munich — Institute for Electrical Energy Storage (EES): TUM institute focused on electrical energy storage, closely aligned with ETI's energy storage research area and operating as a publicly funded German university research entity.
• Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Systems and Device Technology (IISB): Germany's leading applied research institute for power electronics and energy systems. Directly comparable to ETI as an academic/applied research institute focused on power electronics, electrical machines, and energy storage, although operating at substantially larger scale under the Fraunhofer model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/elektrotechnischen-institut-eti-kit

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Elektrotechnisches Institut (ETI), KIT