mmb Institut - Gesellschaft für Medien- und Kompetenzforschung mbH

What mmb Institut - Gesellschaft für Medien- und Kompetenzforschung mbH does

mmb Institut - Gesellschaft für Medien- und Kompetenzforschung mbH is a privately held German research and consulting institute (GmbH) headquartered in Essen, Germany, founded in 1996 by Dr. Ulrich Schmid as Geschäftsführender Gesellschafter (managing shareholder). The institute operates as an independent 'Denkwerkstatt' (think tank) focused on the future of education and learning in five research fields: AI & EdTech, Higher Education, Vocational Education, Schools & Early Childhood, and Competencies & Lifelong Learning.

The institute's product portfolio centers on recurring research publications rather than software. Its flagship product is the mmb Learning Delphi, an annual expert survey on digital learning trends conducted since 2006 (now in its 19th edition in 2024/2025), with results published as the mmb-Trendmonitor. Adjacent research products include the mmb-Branchenmonitor E-Learning-Wirtschaft (industry monitor), the Trendmonitor KI in der Bildung (annual AI-in-education tracker), Trendmonitor Spezial publications, and the INVITE-Meta research project. A more recent AI-mediated product is the KI-Chatbot for the mmb Learning Delphi, launched on the fobizz platform in August 2024 to provide conversational access to study results. Underlying technology is research methodology, longitudinal expert panel surveying, and content production — not platform architecture or proprietary AI models.

Revenue derives from two streams: (1) commissioned research projects, predominantly funded by the BMBF (Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung) and other public bodies, and (2) consulting engagements for educational institutions, foundations (e.g., Deutsche Telekom Stiftung, Stiftung zur Förderung der Hochschulrektorenkonferenz), and industry organizations. The go-to-market is sales-led and relationship-driven, with pricing determined per project on a multi-year contract basis. The institute employs approximately 6 people and operates exclusively within Germany.

Name

mmb Institut - Gesellschaft für Medien- und Kompetenzforschung mbH

Legal name

mmb Institut – Gesellschaft für Medien- und Kompetenzforschung mbH

Website

https://mmb-institut.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

mmb Institut is a privately held German research and consulting institute (founded 1996, Essen) that studies digital education, AI in education, and competency development. It serves the BMBF, foundations, and educational institutions with commissioned studies and recurring annual trend reports.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Education Research & Consulting

NAICS

Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172), Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Learning Management Systems (LMS) & Digital Classrooms (EDAJAMAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Career & College Readiness Platforms (Guidance, Planning, Scholarships) (EDAJAMAO), Assessment Interoperability, Integrations & Standards (QTI/LTI/OneRoster) (EDAFADAK), Digital Learning Content Development (eLearning, Labs, Simulations) (BPAEANAD)

Keywords

• Education research consulting
• Digital learning studies
• EdTech market analysis
• AI education research
• Vocational training research

Headquarters

HQ city

Essen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Research Project Funding: Commissioned research projects funded by government bodies such as BMBF (Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung) and other public institutions.
2. Consulting Services: Advisory and consulting services for educational institutions, companies, and government organizations on digital education strategies.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

mmb Institut is an independent German research and consulting institute that conducts commissioned studies, annual trend surveys, and strategic consulting on digital education, learning technology, and AI in education. It produces proprietary longitudinal research products such as the mmb Learning Delphi expert survey and the mmb-Trendmonitor publication series, while advising universities, schools, vocational training organizations, foundations, and federal ministries on digitalization strategies.

Product overview

mmb Institut is a research and consulting institute (not a software product company) offering a portfolio of research products and studies on digital education and learning. The core products are the mmb Learning Delphi (annual expert trend survey since 2006) and mmb-Trendmonitor (published findings), supplemented by the mmb-Branchenmonitor E-Learning-Wirtschaft (industry monitor), Trendmonitor KI in der Bildung (AI in education tracker), and the INVITE-Meta research project. These research products are complemented by an AI chatbot feature for querying study results. The institute does not offer a unified software platform but rather publishes periodic studies and trend analyses for the education sector.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• mmb Learning Delphi: Annual trend study surveying experts on digital learning developments over the next three years
• mmb-Trendmonitor
• mmb-Branchenmonitor
• mmbulletin
• Update Bildung

Products and services

• mmb Learning Delphi Annual expert survey study on digital learning trends and developments, conducted since 2006 with three-year forecasts. The 2024/2025 edition surveyed 71 learning experts on topics such as LLMs and AI-supported learning forms. Targeted at German educational institutions, ministries, and EdTech market actors.
• mmb-Trendmonitor Annual publication series presenting the results of the mmb Learning Delphi trend study, documenting two decades of digital learning trends in Germany. Available as PDF downloads for policy makers, educational institutions, and EdTech market participants.
• mmb-Branchenmonitor E-Learning-Wirtschaft Annual industry monitor surveying German E-Learning service providers on market developments, revenue growth, and business trends in the digital learning economy. Provides market intelligence to EdTech companies, investors, and policy makers.
• Trendmonitor KI in der Bildung Annual special publication examining AI applications, opportunities, and challenges in educational settings, including rule frameworks for AI use in schools and MINT learning with AI. Produced in collaboration with Deutsche Telekom Stiftung.
• INVITE-Meta Research Project Meta-research project accompanying the BMBF-funded INVITE innovation competition for digital vocational education platforms. Conducts studies on AI standards, metadata standards, and recommender systems for vocational training, in collaboration with DFKI.

Quantifiable outcome

• Annual trend reports influencing German education policy and EdTech market direction

Named customers3 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

AI capability5 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

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

• DFKI (Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Künstliche Intelligenz)coreTechnology or Integration · 1 May 2021Collaborative research partnership in the INVITE-Meta project focusing on digital education platforms and AI in vocational training. DFKI provides AI expertise while mmb contributes educational research capabilities.
• INVITE (Innovationswettbewerb) - BIBBcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMeta-project (INVITE-Meta) accompanying the BMBF-funded INVITE innovation competition on digital platforms for vocational education. mmb Institut serves as the research partner alongside DFKI.
• Stiftung zur Förderung der HochschulrektorenkonferenzmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommissioned study on digital sovereignty at German higher education institutions.
• Deutsche Telekom StiftungmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on the Trendmonitor KI in der Bildung and guidelines for AI deployment in schools.
• Initiative D21 e.V.minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSpecial analysis of the D21 Digital Index covering digital competencies of the population.
• Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft e.V.minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSupport for the 'Allianz für Lehrkräfte' (Alliance for Teachers) initiative to improve teacher education quality.
• Forum Bildung DigitalisierungmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoordinated guidelines process for digital education development in Germany under the Initiative Digitale Bildung.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• fobizz: German EdTech platform for teacher digital-skills training that hosts mmb's KI-Chatbot for the mmb Learning Delphi — a close commercialization partner that demonstrates the platform layer adjacent to mmb's research content.

Broad incumbents

• Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft: German enterprise and foundation association funding education research and innovation, formally partnered with mmb on the Allianz für Lehrkräfte initiative — overlapping audience of education-policy decision-makers and foundation-funded research commissioning.
• BIBB (Bundesinstitut für Berufsbildung): Federal institute for vocational education and training that funds and oversees large research initiatives including the INVITE innovation competition where mmb serves as the meta-research partner — operates at substantially larger scale but shares the vocational-education research domain.
• Bertelsmann Stiftung: Large German private foundation with a substantial education division conducting independent studies on digital learning, school reform, and EdTech policy — operating at materially larger scale than mmb but covering overlapping topics and competing for the same policy-influence audience.
• Institut für deutsche Wirtschaft (IW): Cologne-based economic research institute producing education and labor-market research for German policy audiences — a comparable German think-tank model combining research publications, policy consulting, and media presence.
• Fraunhofer IAIS: Fraunhofer Institute for Intelligent Analysis and Information Systems conducts applied research on AI in education and learning analytics, pairing with mmb's DFKI collaboration as a similar large-scale German research player focused on AI and education.

Direct peers

• Initiative D21 e.V. German non-profit publishing the D21 Digital Index on digital competencies of the population — directly comparable to mmb's industry-monitoring and competency-research work, with mmb having produced specialized analyses of the D21 dataset.
• CHE Centrum für Hochschulentwicklung: German think tank focused on higher education reform and digitalization — directly comparable to mmb's Hochschule research field, producing surveys and rankings of German universities on digital readiness.
• Forum Bildung Digitalisierung: German non-profit driving digital education policy and practice, with whom mmb collaborates on the Leitlinienprozess initiative — a close peer in mission and stakeholder base within the German digital-education ecosystem.
• DIPF Leibniz Institute for Research and Information in Education: German research institute specializing in educational research and evidence-based education policy, directly comparable to mmb as a publicly funded research body producing studies on digital education, learning technologies, and educational assessment.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mmb-institut-gesellschaft-f%C3%BCr-medien-und-kompetenzforschung-mbh

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about mmb Institut - Gesellschaft für Medien- und Kompetenzforschung mbH