VentureLab | Gründungsberatung | Startup Accelerator

What VentureLab | Gründungsberatung | Startup Accelerator does

VentureLab is the startup hub (Gründerzentrum) of Technische Hochschule Aschaffenburg (TH AB), a public university in Bavaria, Germany. Founded in 2021 by Prof. Dr. Boris Bauke, it operates as a state-funded initiative providing free startup consulting, education, and incubation services primarily to students, aspiring entrepreneurs, and regional SMEs in the Aschaffenburg-Untermain region. The organization is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection (BMWK), enabling all services to be offered at no cost to users.

Its core offerings include one-on-one founding consultation (Gründungsberatung), workshops and events (including the Summer School and V-Camp bootcamp), financial advisory on public funding programs (EXIST, KfW-StartGeld, KickStart), and university-embedded educational programs — notably the Gründungssemester, the first such program at a Bavarian university, approved in August 2022, which allows students to earn ECTS credits while building a startup. The operation is supported by a 14-person team covering consulting, AI/ML expertise, social media, events, and operations, and is legally embedded within TH Aschaffenburg.

VentureLab also serves as the KI Regionalzentrum Unterfranken for the KI Transfer+ network, helping SMEs in the Bavarian Untermain region adopt AI technologies, and hosts the KIBU AI community at kibu.community. The organization uses a generative AI chatbot on its website (powered by OpenAI) for visitor engagement, and its team includes roles focused on machine learning and AI transfer. The business model is entirely non-commercial: there is no revenue from users; all funding flows from federal ministries, with no equity, fees, or external shareholders.

Name

VentureLab | Gründungsberatung | Startup Accelerator

Legal name

Technische Hochschule Aschaffenburg

Website

https://venture-lab.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

VentureLab is a state-funded startup hub at TH Aschaffenburg providing free founding consulting, ECTS-credit entrepreneurship programs, and AI adoption support to students, aspiring entrepreneurs, and regional SMEs in the Bavarian Untermain region.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Startup Incubation & Entrepreneurship Consulting

NAICS

Other Management Consulting Services (541618)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Entrepreneurship Foundations & Startup Basics (EDAMAHAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Technical Universities with Entrepreneurship & Incubation Focus (EDAHAEAH), Youth Business Incubators & Accelerators (EDAMAHAC)

Keywords

• Startup incubation services
• Entrepreneurship education programs
• Free founder consulting
• Regional AI adoption support
• University startup hub

Headquarters

HQ city

Aschaffenburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. State Funding: VentureLab is fully funded by German federal ministries (BMBF and BMWK), providing all services free of charge to entrepreneurs. No commercial revenue model as the organization operates as a public academic support entity.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

VentureLab is the state-funded startup hub of Technische Hochschule Aschaffenburg, offering free startup consulting, workshops, financing guidance, and educational programs (incl. ECTS-credit courses and the Gründungssemester) to students and aspiring entrepreneurs in the Aschaffenburg region. It also serves as the KI Regionalzentrum Unterfranken, helping SMEs adopt AI technologies through the KI Transfer+ initiative. All services are 100% free of charge, funded by German federal ministries BMBF and BMWK.

Product overview

VentureLab is the startup hub and incubation center of the Technical University of Aschaffenburg (TH AB), funded by German federal ministries (BMBF, BMWK). It offers a portfolio of free advisory, educational, and networking services for aspiring entrepreneurs — not a single software product. The core offering spans free consulting on founding and business development, workshops (Startup Basics PDF guide), educational courses that awardECTS credits (through the university's Lehrkooperationen), a V-Camp startup bootcamp, a KI (AI) community called KIBU, a KI Transfer+ regional center for SME AI adoption, Silicon Valley immersion programs, and a Gründungssemester that lets students earn credits while building a startup. All services are free of charge for users.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Gründungsberatung (Founding Consultation) Free advisory services for startups covering founding questions, business development, prototyping, and financing — available to students and the regional startup community at all stages of the founding journey.
• Startup Basics PDF Guide A free 50+ page PDF guide covering 14 steps of company founding, including idea validation, team building, lean methodology, market analysis, business model development, marketing strategy, prototyping, financing, and market entry. Users subscribe to the newsletter to access the PDF.
• Workshops & Events (incl. V-Camp Bootcamp) Online and in-person workshops on tech, trends, and founding skills; networking events for founders; programs such as the V-Camp startup bootcamp. All free of charge.
• Lehrkooperationen / Gründungssemester (Educational Collaborations) University course collaborations enabling students to earn ECTS credits through entrepreneurship education, a practical semester replacement with startup work, or a bachelor thesis on startup topics. The first Gründungssemester at a Bavarian university was approved in August 2022.
• Finanzierungsberatung (Financing Consultation) Advisory on funding and financing options for startups, including information on state programs such as the EXIST-Gründungs-Stipendium and KfW-StartGeld, KickStart funding, and other public grants.
• KIBU / KI Regionalzentrum Unterfranken (AI Community & Regional Center) A community platform and regional center for AI knowledge exchange (KI Transfer+ Netzwerk), aimed at connecting AI enthusiasts and helping SMEs in the Bavarian Untermain region adopt AI technologies. VentureLab hosts the KI community and its own KIBU community at kibu.community.
• Silicon Valley Week A one-week immersion program in the Silicon Valley, giving students and startup founders exposure to the global tech and startup ecosystem, including visits to major tech companies and startup hubs.

Quantifiable outcome

• First Gründungssemester (founding semester) approved in Bavaria
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

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 capability3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Technische Hochschule Aschaffenburg (TH AB)coreOthersVentureLab is the startup hub of TH Aschaffenburg, embedded within the university's infrastructure. Provides office space, laboratory access, and integration with academic programs including the Gründungssemester (founding semester) that awards ECTS credits.
• TechstarsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTech partnership for startup weekend events and international startup network access.
• KI Transfer+ NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVentureLab serves as Regionalzentrum (regional center) for the KI Transfer+ initiative, helping SMEs in Bavarian Untermain implement AI technologies.
• BayStartUPminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBavarian startup network partnership for regional startup ecosystem connectivity.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF): Largest German public-private seed investor backing tech startups, including many university spinouts. Adjacent in the same founder-support ecosystem and a frequent downstream capital partner for accelerator graduates.

Direct peers

• Founders Foundation: Bielefeld-based non-profit startup support organization delivering education, community, and incubation programs; comparable in being a publicly-backed founder-support entity rather than a venture fund.
• KIT Gründerschmiede: Startup hub of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, providing entrepreneurship education, events, and consulting to KIT students and researchers — same university-embedded accelerator archetype.
• Strascheg Center for Entrepreneurship (SCE): Entrepreneurship center at Munich University of Applied Sciences (Hochschule München); runs innovation programs, STARTUP TEACH, and a Gründerzentrum analogous to VentureLab's role at TH Aschaffenburg.
• UnternehmerTUM: The entrepreneurship center of TU Munich; offers founders consulting, programs, and co-working in Bavaria. Direct functional equivalent to VentureLab at a much larger scale.
• Science4Life: German non-profit accelerator/competition focused on university spinouts in life sciences and tech; operates a publicly-backed founder development program structurally similar to VentureLab's support flow.
• TU Berlin Startup Service / Start-up Unit: TU Berlin's startup support unit offering student founders consulting, events, and infrastructure — same university-embedded, publicly-funded accelerator archetype.
• RWTH Innovation: Central innovation and startup hub of RWTH Aachen University; supports spinouts and founders with consulting and program infrastructure analogous to VentureLab at TH Aschaffenburg.
• BayStartUP: Bavarian state-wide startup network offering coaching, financing, and events; VentureLab's regional partner and a comparable public-backed founder support network, just at state scale.
• TechQuartier: Frankfurt-based innovation and startup hub with programs for founders and corporates; already a VentureLab partner logo and a direct comparable regional innovation hub.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCAMCv554P5InV7ST7sDhuTg
• Facebookfacebook.com/VentureLab-105086961133854
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/venturelabthab
• Instagraminstagram.com/venturelabthab
• TikToktiktok.com/@weareventurelab

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 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 VentureLab | Gründungsberatung | Startup Accelerator