Rwth Collective Incubator

Name

Rwth Collective Incubator

Legal name

Collective Incubator e.V.

Website

https://collective-incubator.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

University Startup Incubator and Co-Innovation Platform

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Business Incubators & Accelerators (EDAMAHAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Makerspaces & Fab Labs (Open Build Studios) (EDAMADAC), Makerspace, Innovation Lab & Fab Lab Operations (Tools, Safety, Programming) (EDAEAGAI)

Keywords

• University startup incubator
• Co-working space
• Maker space prototyping
• Student entrepreneurship platform
• Non-profit innovation hub

Headquarters

HQ city

Aachen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Government Funding: Funded by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Innovation, Digitisation and Energy of the State of NRW as part of the Excellence Start-up Center NRW (ESC.NRW) programme. RWTH Innovation GmbH handles operations. The program received 23.3 million euros over five years starting 2019.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Collective Incubator provides a free co-innovation platform combining a nearly 4,000 m² co-working space (flex desks, offices, conference rooms, event space, film and podcast studios) and a 1,000+ m² Maker Space for prototyping in metal, plastic, wood, textile, electronics, and 3D printing. It is delivered alongside the Collective Incubator Cloud online platform for community administration, room booking, 24/7 access, and networking. Services are offered free of charge, with no equity taken, to students, researchers, start-ups, and student initiatives of RWTH Aachen and FH Aachen.

Product overview

The Collective Incubator operates as a co-innovation platform combining physical infrastructure with a digital platform. The core offerings include the Collective Incubator Cloud (online platform for administration and community networking), a 4,000 m² co-working space with offices, meeting rooms, event space, and media studios, and a 1,000+ m² Maker Space with prototyping equipment across metalworking, woodworking, plastics, textiles, electronics, and 3D printing. Additional services include conference room booking, event hosting capabilities, the Student Initiative Fund for financial support, and the Social Entrepreneurship Program. All services are free for students and staff of RWTH Aachen and FH Aachen.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Collective Incubator Cloud: Online platform for administrative processes such as booking conference rooms and setting up 24/7 access, as well as networking for startups and student initiatives
• Student Initiative Fund (SIF)

Products and services

• Collective Incubator Cloud Online platform for administrative processes including room booking, 24/7 access setup, team management, and member invitations, as well as a digital community network for startups and student initiatives to exchange and communicate.
• Co-working Space Nearly 4,000 m² facility across three floors offering flexible desks, offices, meeting rooms, work café, lounge, and event space, including a film studio and podcast studio.
• Maker Space Over 1,000 m² workshop facility with metalworking, woodworking, plastics, textile, electronics, and 3D printing areas, including additive manufacturing, metalworking and welding, printing, textile, and woodworking equipment.
• Conference Rooms Bookable meeting rooms including Charpentier (9 people), Hopper (10), Lilienthal (10), Lovelace (10), Spencer (12), Türeci (8), Flex Office 1 (6), and Flex Office 2 (16), reserved through the Cloud platform.
• Event Space Event venue with projector and event technology for digital and hybrid events, accommodating up to 70-80 people in theater-style seating, including an arena with seating stands (Town Hall) and two event rooms.
• Media Studio In-house film studio for promotional photos and videos with live streaming capabilities, plus a fully equipped podcast studio.
• Student Initiative Fund (SIF) Financial support program for student-led initiatives at RWTH Aachen and FH Aachen with funding areas including Technology & Innovation (up to €4,000), Sustainability (up to €4,000), and Social Equality (€500–€2,000).
• Social Entrepreneurship Program Annual funding program supporting social entrepreneurs with approximately €45,000 in total project funding per round, made possible through Santander Universities support.

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

Integration5 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

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

• UtimacomajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 31 December 2021Cybersecurity specialist and global provider of High Security Technology for Cybersecurity and Compliance Solutions. Partnership for two years in the area of Talent & Innovation. Utimaco becomes the central contact for Cybersecurity topics at the Collective Incubator and gains direct access to the community of over 140 student initiatives and startups. Utimaco has 470 employees with headquarters in Aachen and Campbell, CA, USA.
• Exzellenz Start-up Center NRW (ESC.NRW)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 December 2019ESC.NRW is the funding program from the NRW Ministry of Economics that has been funding RWTH start-up activities since 2019 with a total of 23.3 million euros over five years. The Collective Incubator is the largest single measure within this program and will be equipped with first-class infrastructure for building new startups and developing primarily technological prototypes.
• RWTH Innovation GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRWTH Innovation GmbH encompasses research transfer and start-up support at RWTH Aachen University and is the closest partner of the Collective Incubator. All activities from raising awareness of the topic of start-ups among students and researchers to ideation and incubation programmes and coaching come together here.
• SiemensmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorporate partner with active involvement in the community, seeking to identify and support talent, innovation, and new companies.
• SAPmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of the world's largest IT companies became a partner in early 2022, collaborating in the area of talent. This includes direct contact with students at RWTH and FH Aachen, local presence in the startup community, and events. SAP gains access to the community of students, researchers, and more than 150 startups and student projects.
• Deutsche TelekommajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorporate partner actively involved in the community to identify talent, innovation, and new companies.
• Deutsche BahnmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorporate partner with active involvement in the community, seeking to identify and support talent, innovation, and new companies.
• Saint-GobainmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorporate partner actively involved in the community to identify talent, innovation, and new companies.
• CelonismajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProcess mining company and corporate partner actively involved in the community to identify talent, innovation, and new companies.
• Bain & CompanymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerManagement consulting firm and corporate partner actively involved in the community to identify talent, innovation, and new companies.
• Techniker KrankenkasseminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGerman health insurance provider partnering in three areas: health (sports challenges, nutrition), consulting (questions about health and social insurance), and innovation (events and workshops).
• CovestrominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMaterials manufacturer and corporate partner actively involved in the community.
• MathesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorporate partner with active involvement in the community.
• Stadt AachenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCity of Aachen, supporting the startup ecosystem and the Collective Incubator initiative.
• LemontapsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner company actively involved in the community.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Station F: Paris-based mega startup campus hosting hundreds of programs and incubators. Comparable only at the ecosystem level — a much larger, well-capitalized hub where Collective Incubator alumni might also engage.

Direct peers

• Founders Foundation: Bielefeld-based non-profit startup support organization offering accelerator programs and community. Comparable as a German, publicly-backed startup platform focused on ideation-to-scale founder development.
• TU Berlin Startup Service: Central startup support and incubation office at TU Berlin. Comparable as a major German public-university incubator offering co-working, mentoring, and corporate partner programs to students and researchers.
• TUM Entrepreneurship: TU Munich's broader startup support unit covering ideation, incubation, and funding. Comparable in serving a German technical university ecosystem with structured programs and industry partners.
• UnternehmerTUM: TU Munich's central entrepreneurship and incubator hub. Comparable as a German university-backed co-working, maker, and accelerator platform targeting students, researchers, and corporate partners with a similar community-led model.
• KIT Gründerschmiede: Founder forge at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology offering co-working, prototyping, and incubation services to KIT students and researchers. Comparable in being a deep-tech university incubator with public funding.

Others

• RWTH Innovation GmbH: RWTH's research-transfer and startup-support arm, the closest institutional partner and a complementary (rather than competing) provider of ideation and coaching programs.
• JetBrains (Startup Growth Partner): Software tools vendor listed as a startup-growth partner providing developer tools to the Collective Incubator community. Relevant as an enabling/ecosystem partner, not a competitor.
• RWTH Aachen University (parent institution): Public parent institution providing infrastructure, talent funnel, and political backing. Not a direct competitor but a structural enabler for the Collective Incubator.
• Exzellenz Start-up Center NRW (ESC.NRW): State-level funding programme from the NRW Ministry of Economic Affairs. Functions as a sponsor/funder and ecosystem umbrella rather than a direct competitor, but sets the broader NRW incubator agenda.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/collectiveincubator
• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/CollectiveIncubator
• Facebookfacebook.com/collectiveincubator
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/collective-incubator
• Instagraminstagram.com/collectiveincubator

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 Rwth Collective Incubator