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Berlin's Silicon Valley
The start-up capital Berlin is attracting talent from all over the world
Berlin, December 2015 Dynamic, international, diverse, creative and tolerant: Berlin has what it
takes to attract talent from all over the world. It's no wonder then that the city is now
acknowledged as a European centre for start-ups and the press is now dubbing Berlin the
"Silicon Valley on the River Spree". Well-known companies such as Zalando, SoundCloud and
ResearchGate were started here. More and more global companies like Microsoft and Google
are attracted by the fertile atmosphere of the German capital and are coming here to search for
talent and the next "big idea".
This development has not just happened out of thin air. Rather, it is the result of the extensive
ecosystem of young entrepreneurs in Berlin that attracts other creative people and ideas. The
reasons for this include: there is an extraordinarily high number of pioneers in Berlin who want
to be successful with their new ideas. And they are supported by countless highly qualified
people such as programmers and managers who can turn these ideas into viable products. Berlin
also attracts the kind of venture capitalists who made Silicon Valley what it is today. Now it's
Berlin's turn. Of course, there's talent and money elsewhere in the world, but Berlin is also
attractive with a well-functioning bureaucracy and a reliable legal system. Those who invest
here can depend on the rules being clear. And finally: start-ups are treated with respect here
and even come into the limelight. In Berlin, young entrepreneurs are stars, not unlike fashion
designers in Milan or actors in Hollywood.
This has been shown to be the case at the numerous events for start-ups, such as re:publica,
Berlin Web Week and TechCrunch Disrupt. The public, too, is invited to learn more about the
city's start-up scene during the "Long Night of Start-Ups" held during re:publica. Young
entrepreneurs explain their business ideas to their fellow citizens, hoping, of course, to find
investors in the audience. www.zalando.co.uk, www.soundcloud.com, www.researchgate.de,
www.re-publica.de/en, www.berlinwebweek.de, www.techcrunch.com,
www.startupnight.de/en.
From trend to key economic factor
Start-ups have long since left their exotic status to become a major driver behind the growth of
Berlin's economy. The digital industry has become almost as large a factor in Berlin's economic
success as the international tourism that has been thriving for years. The companies are raking
in revenues of some €8 billion each year and employ more than 62,000 people. They now
represent 4.2 per cent of Berlin's economic output – a figure that continues to rise. In 2012
alone, there were 449 start-ups, up 44 per cent compared to 2008. This means that, on average,
a new company was registered in the city's commercial register every 20 hours.
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The world is also taking notice, recognising Berlin as one of the most interesting places for startups. The scene is well-linked with other business centres such as New York, Washington and San
Francisco and also maintains strong links with the Israeli IT capital of Tel Aviv. In return, Berlin's
innovative ecosystem is also drawing international corporations to the city. For example, Google
has set up its Factory Berlin campus to provide support and stimulate dialogue between the
young entrepreneurs with established companies. Apple has opened one of its large stores on
Kurfürstendamm, the traditional shopping street in City West.
Microsoft Germany has also deliberately settled in Berlin and has opened an office to showcase
its wares on the key east-west boulevard Unter den Linden. "Our Unter den Linden location
offers openness and transparency, a place to meet, discuss and find new ways forward", says
branch manager Henrik Tesch. "With the fall of the Berlin Wall, Berlin came to symbolise
upheaval and reawakening for the entire world, a change that has significantly changes the
economy, culture and the lives of the people of Germany and Europe. As a company, we support
a society undergoing the same kinds of upheaval and reawakening through the digital and media
revolutions of today. Anyone who lives in Berlin or is just visiting constantly has upheaval and
renewal right here before their eyes." www.factoryberlin.com
They are the future: the minds behind Berlin's start-up scene
Many of Berlin's start-ups have since become some of the most famous brands on the digital
scene, for example, online retailer Zalando and comparison shopping site idealo. In addition,
there are many young companies that offer products and services from a wide range of different
areas: wedding dresses, bridal wear and wedding accessories (Wunsch Brautkleid, founded by
Michael Heid and Fabian Westerheider); online German courses (Lingoda, founded by Fabian
and Felix Wunderlich); and mobile mixers for DJs Pokketmixxer.com, founded by Robert
Thomalla and Christian Komm).
Among the most famous start-up entrepreneurs in the city are the three brothers Marc, Oliver
and Alexander Samwer, who founded the internet auction site Alanda, which was purchased
shortly thereafter by eBay. They now operate the internet incubator Rocket Internet in Berlin as
well as the venture capital companies European Founders Fund and Global Founders Capital.
They have invested in start-ups such as Jamba, Zalando and eDarling.
www.zalando.co.uk, www.idealo.de, www.wunsch-brautkleid.de, www.lingoda.com,
www.pokketmixer.com/en.html, www.rocket-internet.de, www.europeanfounders.com,
www.globalfounders.vc
Start-ups as tourist magnets
To gain some insight into the start-up culture of Berlin, you should come take a look at the
places where they hang out. A good starting point would be Café St. Oberholz on Rosenthaler
Platz in Berlin-Mitte. This is where the city's digital Bohemians gather to work on new business
ideas in the main space or in the café's own co-working space. Just a few blocks away in
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Press Contact
[email protected]
Tel.: +49 (0)30 26 47 48 – 956
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Weinmeisterstraßse, the Kaffee Mitte and the restaurant DUDU in busy Torstraße brings in a mix
of young entrepreneurs and hipsters.
The young companies like to set up their offices in historic industrial buildings such as the
Backfabrik on the border between Mitte and Prenzlauer Berg. This former factory for pea soup
and bread rolls has been a think tank for young entrepreneurs since 2002, where they come up
with the next big thing on the internet. Another established address in the tech start-up scene is
Beta House in Kreuzberg, which regularly hosts events and where start-ups can easily rent coworking spaces. A more recent addition, however, has been Factory Berlin, officially opened in a
new building along the former no-man's land. The campus is now home to companies
SoundCloud, Mozilla and Twitter.
Another campus for start-ups will be added in the future: once Tegel Airport is finally closed
down, its site will become Berlin TXL: The Urban Tech Republic, a 460 hectare campus housing
800 companies, universities and research institutions. 15,000 jobs will be created here and 5,000
students will pursue their studies on this campus. The technologies for the cities of tomorrow
will be developed here – including solutions for energy, water, mobility, recycling, materials, and
information and communications technology.
Meanwhile, start-ups have developed into real Berlin attractions for tourists. You can sign for a
Start-Up Safary to tour the offices of young companies or participate in workshops and other
events.
www.sanktoberholz.de/?lang=en, www.kaffeemitte.de, www.dudu-berlin.de,
www.backfabrik.de, www.factoryberlin.com, www.betahaus.com/berlin,
www.Startupsafary.com, www.berlintxl.de/?lang=en
Berlin in high demand for digital conferences
Berlin is not a centre for IT start-ups, but it is in high demand for meetings and conferences on
digital themes: 2015 saw more than 50 events held in the German capital that focused on global
digitalisation issues. That's an average of one conference a week.
This year's Berlin Web Week in May bundled more than 20 conferences on hot topics related to
the digital society such as the processing of the huge amounts of data currently collected from
users of networked devices such as smartphones. The heart of Web Week is the re:publica
conference about Web 2.0 and social media.
More than a third of this year's events will be returning to Berlin in 2016. In addition to the
tenth edition of re:publica in May, the Next Hacker programming contest is coming to the city
26 and 27 February. The competition is expected to draw 3,000 participants to the city and is
sure to be one of the biggest digital events in the coming year.
It is dedicated to the social, cultural and economic impacts of social media and divides its
program into three levels: beginner, intermediate and advanced. re:publica has been held in
visitBerlin / Berlin Tourismus & Kongress GmbH
Press Office
Am Karlsbad 11
D-10785 Berlin
Press Contact
[email protected]
Tel.: +49 (0)30 26 47 48 – 956
Fax: +49 (0)30 26 47 48 – 983
visitBerlin.com
facebook.com/Berlin
facebook.com/visitBerlin
press.visitBerlin.com
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twitter.com/BerlinTourism
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Berlin every year since 2007 and focuses on topics related to web 2.0, such as blogs, social
media and the digital society.
www.berlinwebweek.de, www.re-publica.de/en,
More at visitBerlin.com and www.berlin-partner.de.
visitBerlin / Berlin Tourismus & Kongress GmbH
Press Office
Am Karlsbad 11
D-10785 Berlin
Press Contact
[email protected]
Tel.: +49 (0)30 26 47 48 – 956
Fax: +49 (0)30 26 47 48 – 983
visitBerlin.com
facebook.com/Berlin
facebook.com/visitBerlin
press.visitBerlin.com
blog.visitBerlin.com
twitter.com/BerlinTourism