GRÜNDUNGSBÜRO der Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg

What GRÜNDUNGSBÜRO der Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg does

The Gründungsbüro (Startup Office) is the dedicated startup advisory and technology transfer unit of Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, operating as a department within the university's Zentralstelle für Technologietransfer (ZFT) and led by Dr. Thurid Gspann. It supports students, graduates, post-doctoral researchers, and faculty in developing business ideas, structuring spin-offs, and applying to public funding programs — most prominently the federal EXIST family of grants (EXIST Gründerstipendium, EXIST Forschungstransfer, EXIST Women) and the state-level Junge Innovatoren program. Core offerings comprise free one-on-one startup consulting, regular networking events (Startup BBQs, Talks, Female Founders Afterwork), two annual lecture series and a business plan seminar co-delivered with the Zentrum für Schlüsselqualifikationen (ZfS), and a credit-bearing Business Development practical module. The office does not develop or operate proprietary technology; its distribution is direct (in-person consulting at Stefan-Meier-Straße 8 and online office hours) and entirely free of charge to users.

The Gründungsbüro operates within a layered ecosystem of programs and partnerships that extends well beyond the university. It leads the INSPIRE BW Hub 'Schwarzwälder Gründergeist' together with Hochschule Offenburg and Hochschule Furtwangen as part of a state-funded network of six regional hubs covering 28 Baden-Württemberg universities, and co-organizes the trinational KTUR² (Knowledge Transfer Upper Rhine) Summer School rotating across Freiburg, Basel, and Strasbourg. In 2025 it helped launch FRENI (Freiburg Entrepreneurship Institut) to broaden entrepreneurship support across industries in Southern Baden, and it participates in the Startup|Energy initiative with the Freiburg Solar Energy Foundation. Marketing and outreach are predominantly organic — a bilingual website, LinkedIn, Instagram, and a rapidmail newsletter — with no paid acquisition.

The business model is institutional rather than commercial: the office is publicly funded through the university and through Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Science grants (notably up to €1.8M annually distributed across the six INSPIRE BW Hubs), and all advisory services are delivered free of charge. There are no external investors, no equity ownership, no commercial pricing tiers, and no disclosed revenue. The customer base is the university community plus a small set of external participants, with no named enterprise customers, no ARR, and no recurring contracts — engagement is episodic and project-driven, tied to individual founders' grant cycles and event participation.

Name

GRÜNDUNGSBÜRO der Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg

Legal name

Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg

Website

https://gruenden.uni-freiburg.de

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Gründungsbüro is the publicly funded startup advisory and technology transfer office of Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, providing free consulting, EXIST grant guidance, and events to students, researchers, and faculty across the university and the Baden-Württemberg startup ecosystem.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

University Entrepreneurship Support Services

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310), Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (541), Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Makerspace, Innovation Lab & Fab Lab Operations (Tools, Safety, Programming) (EDAEAGAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Technical Bootcamps & Accelerated Reskilling (Full-time/Part-time) (BPAEANAE)

Keywords

• University startup support
• Entrepreneurship consulting
• Technology transfer services
• Academic spin-off advising
• Startup funding advisory

Headquarters

HQ city

Freiburg im Breisgau

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Public/Government Funding: The Gründungsbüro is funded by the Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg and receives grants from government programs including the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Science (INSPIRE BW Hubs project — up to €1.8M annually across 6 hubs / 28 universities). It does not charge fees for its advisory services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Gründungsbüro is the free startup support office of Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, embedded in the university's Zentralstelle für Technologietransfer (ZFT). It delivers individual consulting on business idea development and grant applications, guides founders to public funding programs such as EXIST Gründerstipendium, EXIST Forschungstransfer, EXIST Women and Junge Innovatoren, and runs recurring event formats (Startup BBQs, Talks, Female Founders Afterwork), the trinational KTUR² Summer School, and academic lecture series in cooperation with ZfS.

Product overview

The Gründungsbüro (Startup Office) is a comprehensive startup support service operated by the Central Office for Technology Transfer (ZFT) at Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg. The organization functions as a service unit rather than a product company, offering a unified platform of advisory services, educational programs, and networking opportunities. Core offerings include individual consulting for business idea development, access to funding programs (EXIST grants, Junge Innovatoren), event formats (Start-up BBQs, Talks, networking events, lecture series), and practical business development modules. Supporting initiatives include FRENI (Freiburg Entrepreneurship Institut), the INSPIRE BW Hub 'Schwarzwälder Gründergeist', and KTUR² for trinational knowledge transfer. The office maintains network partnerships with Startinsland and Startup|Energy. The service is delivered through a web portal providing information, event registration, newsletter subscription, and social media channels (LinkedIn, Instagram).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• FRENI – Freiburg Entrepreneurship Institut: Founded in 2025 to support and complement the work of the Gründungsbüro, promoting entrepreneurial personalities in the Southern Baden region across industries.
• KTUR² – Knowledge Transfer Upper Rhine
• Schwarzwälder Gründergeist

Products and services

• Gründungsberatung (Startup Consulting) Individual advisory services from an experienced consulting team to support founders with business ideas, including guidance on possible funding programs. Delivered in person at the office and via Online-Sprechstunde, free of charge.
• Förderprogramme (Funding Programs: EXIST Gründerstipendium, EXIST Forschungstransfer, EXIST Women, Junge Innovatoren) Advisory and application support for public startup funding programs, including EXIST Gründerstipendium, EXIST Forschungstransfer, EXIST Women, and Junge Innovatoren. Targeted at students, graduates, researchers, and female founders.
• Veranstaltungsformate (Event Formats: Startup BBQs, Talks, Networking Events) Regular event offerings including Startup BBQs, Talks, and networking events for prospective founders in the University of Freiburg ecosystem. Open to internal and external participants.
• Business Development Praxismodul ('Business Development: Von der Idee zur Unternehmensgründung')

Quantifiable outcome

• Free support services for all gründungsinteressierten at no cost, funded by university and government programs

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• FRENI – Freiburg Entrepreneurship InstitutcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025FRENI was founded in 2025 to support and expand the work of the Gründungsbüro. It promotes entrepreneurial personalities across industries in the South Baden region and complements the Gründungsbüro's services with additional measures and programs.
• KTUR² – Knowledge Transfer Upper RhinecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKTUR² aims to intensify, structure, and professionalize collaboration between transfer actors (universities, higher education institutions, intermediaries, and companies) in the trinational Upper Rhine region (Germany, France, Switzerland). The Gründungsbüro co-organizes the KTUR² Summer School held annually in Freiburg, Basel, and Strasbourg.
• INSPIRE BW Hub – Schwarzwälder Gründergeist (Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Science funded)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg is the lead university of this INSPIRE BW Hub. Together with Hochschule Offenburg and Hochschule Furtwangen, the Gründungsbüro serves as a regional contact point for startup activities in southern Baden-Württemberg. The project is funded by the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Science with up to €1.8M annually across 6 hubs and 28 universities.
• Hochschule OffenburgmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner university within the Schwarzwälder Gründergeist INSPIRE BW Hub, collaborating on cross-institutional startup support formats and regional entrepreneurship activities.
• Hochschule FurtwangenmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner university within the Schwarzwälder Gründergeist INSPIRE BW Hub, collaborating on cross-institutional startup support formats and regional entrepreneurship activities.
• StartinslandminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional startup portal for the Freiburg area providing answers on space for ideas, funding sources, and ecosystem contacts — from initial financing to target group marketing. Startinsland serves as an information hub for the local startup scene.
• Startup|Energy Initiative (University of Freiburg and Stiftung Solarenergie)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerA joint initiative promoting regional and international exchange between startups working in decentralized renewable energy supply in Germany or East Africa. The initiative connects startups in the energy transition sector across the Upper Rhine and East Africa.
• ZfS – Zentrum für Schlüsselqualifikationen (University of Freiburg)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Gründungsbüro cooperates annually with the ZfS to deliver two lecture series: 'Gründen – aber richtig! Ringvorlesung Entrepreneurship' and the 'Businessplan-Seminar'. The ZfS also co-organizes the KTUR² Summer School as a certified academic course (BOK).
• Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg (parent institution)coreOthersThe Gründungsbüro is part of the Zentralstelle für Technologietransfer (ZFT) of the Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg. It supports the utilization of research results from the University Medical Center and the University of Freiburg, and is interested in active partnerships with companies.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Heidelberg Startup Partners: University of Heidelberg's coordinated startup support structure serving students, researchers, and alumni with consulting and event formats — comparable as a German state-university-embedded entrepreneurship office serving a research-spin-off-heavy founder base.
• Strascheg Center for Entrepreneurship (SCE Munich): Munich-based entrepreneurship research and education center linked to HM Munich University of Applied Sciences; offers research, executive education, and startup programs — comparable as a German university-affiliated entrepreneurship support and applied research entity.
• RWTH Aachen – Center for Entrepreneurship: RWTH Aachen's entrepreneurship center provides consulting, founder programs, and access to EXIST and other federal funding — comparable in mission and services to the Gründungsbüro, anchored to a German research-intensive university.
• TU Berlin – Center for Entrepreneurship: TU Berlin's entrepreneurship center delivers startup consulting, funding program access (EXIST), and event formats to a Berlin research university population — closely comparable in service mix and target audience to the Gründungsbüro.
• KIT Gründergeist (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology): Entrepreneurship and startup support unit at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, also operating as one of the six INSPIRE BW Hubs in Baden-Württemberg — the most direct peer given shared state funding framework and university-embedded consulting/events model.
• Hochschule Offenburg / Hochschule Furtwangen (Schwarzwälder Gründergeist partners): The two partner universities within the Schwarzwälder Gründergeist INSPIRE BW hub — directly comparable smaller university-embedded entrepreneurship support units, and the closest operational peers within the same funding consortium.
• Stuttgart Startup Center / Startup Mannheim: University of Stuttgart's startup support function (and adjacent Mannheim ecosystem) provides comparable consulting and events under the same INSPIRE BW state-funded framework; the most operationally similar peer given shared program design and funding source.

Others

• EXIST programme (BMWK): Federal German ministry program (EXIST Gründerstipendium, EXIST Forschungstransfer, EXIST Women) that the Gründungsbüro channels — included because it is the upstream program/funding authority whose redesign would materially impact the Gründungsbüro's service portfolio.

Broad incumbents

• UnternehmerTUM (TU Munich): Center for innovation and entrepreneurship at the Technical University of Munich, offering startup consulting, funding programs, events, and co-working — directly comparable as a German university-embedded entrepreneurship support office, but with substantially larger scale and a broader program portfolio.

Regional players

• ETH Zurich – Student Project House / entrepreneurship offerings: ETH Zurich runs entrepreneurship programs and spin-off support (via ETH transfer) for one of the world's leading research universities; comparable in mission and quality tier, but operates in Switzerland rather than Baden-Württemberg, and partners with the Gründungsbüro via KTUR².

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/gr%C3%BCndungsb%C3%BCro-der-albert-ludwigs-universit%C3%A4t-freiburg
• Instagraminstagram.com/gruenden_unifreiburg

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about GRÜNDUNGSBÜRO der Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg