User Group: Investor

  • Cyber Valley Days: Day 2

    Cyber Valley Days: Day 2

    Apéro & Cyber Valley Days Meet-up

    Cyber Valley is happy to host the Cyber Valley Days – an exceptional three-day forum for the Cyber Valley Community. Focused solely on AI, Cyber Valley Days features a wide program that emphasizes entrepreneurship and scientific innovation originating from Baden-Württemberg.

    Join us for Day 2 of Cyber Valley Days – Apéro & Cyber Valley Days Meet-up.

    We look forward to meeting you, sharing some food, and drinks, and stimulating conversations!

     

    When

    20 June 2024 | 18:00–20:30

     

    What

    Apéro & Cyber Valley Days Meet-up

     

    Where

    MPI Tübingen

    Max-Planck-Ring 4

    72076 Tübingen

     

    Register for Apéro & Cyber Valley Days Meet-up.

     

    __________________________________________

     

    By registering for this event, I grant permission to Cyber Valley GmbH and ELLIS Institute Tübingen gGmbH to use pictures, videos, and electronic media images in any promotional presentation within its community – offline and online, exclusively for non-profit-making purposes.

    During the Cyber Valley Days, pictures will be taken and videos will be recorded. These materials may be sent out to the media and used for internal and external communication purposes. These files will be stored in a secure location and only authorized staff will have access to them. They will be kept as long as they are relevant and after that time, they will be destroyed or archived.

    Further information on Cyber Valley data protection can be found at: https://cyber-valley.de/en/privacy-policy

     

  • Cyber Valley Days: Day 2

    Cyber Valley Days: Day 2

     

    AI Research & Funding Growth

    Cyber Valley is happy to host Cyber Valley Days – an exceptional three-day forum for the Cyber Valley community. Focused solely on AI, Cyber Valley Days features a wide program that emphasizes entrepreneurship and scientific innovation originating from Baden-Württemberg.

    Join us for Day 2 of Cyber Valley Days – Investor Day, where you'll have the opportunity to connect with investors and start-ups from the Cyber Valley Community, gaining invaluable firsthand insights through panel discussions and start-up demos.

     

    When

    20 June 2024 | 12:00–18:00

     

    What

    13:00 | Arrival & Registration (at Amazon Tübingen)

    13:00 | Coffee and Networking

    13:30 | Panel Discussions, Start-up Demos

    18:00 | Apéro (at MPI Tübingen) (please register here for Apéro)

     

    Where

    Deep Tech & Investor Day Program:

    Amazon Entwicklungszentrum

    72076 Tübingen

    Register for the Deep Tech & Investor Day.

     

    Apéro:

    MPI Tübingen

    Max-Planck-Ring 4

    72076 Tübingen


     

    _________________________________________________________

     

    By registering for this event, I grant permission to Cyber Valley GmbH and ELLIS Institute Tübingen gGmbH to use pictures, videos, and electronic media images in any promotional presentation within its community – offline and online, exclusively for non-profit-making purposes.

    During the Cyber Valley Days, pictures will be taken and videos will be recorded. These materials may be sent out to the media and used for internal and external communication purposes. These files will be stored in a secure location and only authorized staff will have access to them. They will be kept as long as they are relevant, and after that time, they will be destroyed or archived.

    Further information on Cyber Valley data protection can be found at: https://cyber-valley.de/en/privacy-policy

     

  • Cyber Valley Days: Day 2

    Cyber Valley Days: Day 2

     

    ELLIS Institute Tübingen – Scientific Symposium & Opening Ceremony

    We are thrilled to invite you to the grand opening ceremony of the ELLIS Institute in Tübingen!

    Founded on the broader vision of the European Laboratory for Learning and Intelligent Systems (ELLIS), the ELLIS Institute Tübingen is the first ELLIS Institute in Europe, set to become a world-class center for outstanding and free research in machine learning and artificial intelligence.

    We look forward to welcoming you to an engaging program featuring scientific presentations, distinguished guests, and insight into the vision of the ELLIS Institute, as well as the future of AI in Tübingen and Europe.

     

    When

    20 June 2024 | 09:00–18:00

     

    What

    09:00 | Arrival & Registration

    09:15 | Scientific Symposium I

    12:00 | Lunch

    13:30 | Scientific Symposium II

    16:30 | ELLIS Institute Tübingen – Opening Ceremony

    18:00 | Apéro & CVD Meet-up (please register here for Apéro)

     

    Where

    MPI Tübingen

    Max-Planck-Ring 4

    72076 Tübingen

     

    Register to attend the ELLIS Institute Tübingen Symposium & Opening.

    ______________________________________________________

     

    By registering for this event, I grant permission to Cyber Valley GmbH and ELLIS Institute Tübingen gGmbH to use pictures, videos, and electronic media images in any promotional presentation within its community – offline and online, exclusively for non-profit-making purposes.

    During the Cyber Valley Days, pictures will be taken and videos will be recorded. These materials may be sent out to the media and used for internal and external communication purposes. These files will be stored in a secure location and only authorized staff will have access to them. They will be kept as long as they are relevant and after that time, they will be destroyed or archived.

    Further information on Cyber Valley data protection can be found at: https://cyber-valley.de/en/privacy-policy

     

  • Cyber Valley Days: Day 1

    Cyber Valley Days: Day 1

     

    Connecting AI in the länd

    Cyber Valley is happy to host Cyber Valley Days, an exceptional three-day forum for the Cyber Valley community.

    Focused solely on AI, Cyber Valley Days features a wide program that emphasizes entrepreneurship and scientific innovation originating from Baden-Württemberg.

     

    When

    19 June 2024 | 09:30 – 17:00

     

    What

    09:30 | Arrival & Registration

    10:00 | Welcome & Opening

    12:00 | Lunch

    14:00 | AI Incubator Demo Day

    16:00 | Networking

     

    In parallel, you can meet the Cyber Valley Community at our EXPO from 10:00 to 14:00.

     

    Where

    MPI Stuttgart

    Heisenbergstraße 1

    70569 Stuttgart

     

    Register for the Opening, Community Expo & AI Incubator Demo Day.

     

  • Spinoff Summit 2024

    Spinoff Summit 2024

     

    About the Summit: 

    With an invite-only audience of around 150 hand-selected researchers, spinoff founders, universities, TTOs, VCs, industry, and ecosystem players, this summit is a launchpad for innovation, inspiration, and invaluable connections. We will bridge the gap between academia and entrepreneurship through talks, workshops, 1-on-1 meetings, panels, and a poster competition.

    This is a continuation of First Momentum’s successful Clueless No More online panels that were attended by more than 150 aspiring scientist founders and joined by VCs like Lakestar, Earlybird, and UVC, as well as research-driven founders from Wandelbots, DeepDrive, and Kipu Quantum.

     

    Our Speakers: 

     

    Dr. Stephan Herrmann (Co-Founder & CEO at Reverion) 

    Stephan is a physicist and engineer and the strategic mastermind and inventor of Reverion’s technology. Formerly heading a research group at TUM, he is now CEO and managing director of Reverion. As spin-off from the TU Munich, Reverion is paving the way to 100% renewable, decarbonized future by making the most of biogas.

     

    Dr. Ana Koller (Head of Research at First Momentum)

    As a VC, Ana is interested in everything Climate Tech and Energy related. She has a background in Nuclear Fusion, doing her PhD at the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics and a research stint at MIT. Ana continued her career as an Engineering Lead at the world’s biggest fusion startup, Commonwealth Fusion Systems in the US, before joining First Momentum.

     

    Dr. Fleming Bruckmaier (Co-Founder & CTO at QuantumDiamonds) 

    QuantumDiamonds is building a global quantum sensing platform that enables advancements across a variety of fields, from semiconductor manufacturing to biotechnology and chemistry. With a PhD in Quantumsensing from the TU Munich, their CTO Fleming is responsible for improving existing and developing new diamond materials for quantum sensing applications.

     

    Barbara Diehl (Chief Partnership Officer at SPRIN-D)

    Barbara aims to facilitate new disruptive innovations from Germany and support scientists through public funding. Before SPRIN-D, Barbara was Director of Transfer and Innovation at the Helmholtz-Gemeinschaft, and leading early-stage investment programs and an executive education program at the University of Oxford's Entrepreneurship Centre and the Innovation Academy at the University College Dublin.

     

    Tom Nugent (Editor at Sifted)

    Tom is Sifted’s Digital Editor covering university spinouts. Sifted is Europe’s leading tech and startup media outlet. Backed by the Financial Times, its newsletter reaches more than 150,000 founders, VCs and other members of the startup ecosystem in Europe.

     

    Wolfgang Kerler (Editor-in-Chief at 1E9)

    Wolfgang is a co-founder of 1E9, creating optimistic journalism about future technologies and innovations, but also developing a new kind of tech journalism – journalism that is created together with the tech community. Before 1E9, he was a Burns Fellow at The Verge, a Vox Media brand, in New York, and Editorial Director of WIRED Germany.

     

    Where?

    ESO Supernova

    Karl-Schwarzschild-Straße 2

    85748 Garching, Germany

     

    When?

    4th of June, 2024. 9:00 – 18:00

     

    Registration: 

    More information for the event can be found here.

    Please register here.

     

     

  • Cyber Valley grants 500K to CELL’n’ROLL via 2023 Innovation Fellowship Program

    Cyber Valley grants 500K to CELL’n’ROLL via 2023 Innovation Fellowship Program

    CELL’n’ROLL aims to develop next-generation diagnostic solutions for detecting complex diseases such as cancer. Leveraging robotics, artificial intelligence, and microtechnology, the initiative aims to democratize access to these diagnostic tools worldwide. CELL’n’ROLL envisions a future where diagnostics are not only swift and precise but also accessible in resource-constrained settings by harnessing the power of robotics, artificial intelligence, and microfluidics. 

    The CELL’n’ROLL team consists of Postdoctoral Researchers Alp Can Karacakol, Erdost Yildiz, and the project leader Ugur Bozuyuk. As emerging scientific talents, the team comprises three scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems, each with interdisciplinary expertise spanning medicine and engineering, and a collective experience exceeding three years of collaboration. Additionally, the team benefits from mentorship provided by international experts from academia and industry. 

    The Innovation Fellowship program will support their journey from outstanding research to practical application. The program’s aim is to bridge the gap between research and commercial application by fostering scientific breakthroughs that add value to science, economy, and society. The Innovation Fellowship program is funded by the Carl-Zeiss-Stiftung (CZS) and offers talented individuals or teams the opportunity to translate their research into tangible applications. With a duration of up to 24 months, researchers work on a project that is not yet commercially viable and requires time for further development and product transformation in a research environment. The program focuses on application-oriented research related to artificial intelligence and robotics. Its goal is to create an innovative spin-off from the project after the funding term has ended.  

    With its mission of creating “an open environment for scientific breakthroughs”, the Carl Zeiss Foundation is an essential Cyber Valley partner. The foundation aims to accompany the entrepreneurial path of young talent from research to application. It strives to achieve scientific breakthroughs that support research, the economy, and society through funding elementary research and specific applications.  

    The next Cyber Valley Innovation Fellowship call for proposals will be announced in April 2024. Scientists employed by the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems, the University of Stuttgart, and the University of Tübingen are eligible to apply. All external scientists affiliated with these Institutes may also apply.  

    About Cyber Valley  

    Cyber Valley is Europe’s largest and leading center for excellence in artificial intelligence and modern robotics. Its mission and public mandate are to advocate for research, development, application, and acceptance of technologies and methods in the field of intelligent systems. Cyber Valley encourages entrepreneurship by uniting scientific excellence with innovation and technology transfer. In addition, Cyber Valley facilitates critical reflection on the ethical and social implications of AI through public engagement. Cyber Valley envisions a future in which the full potential of intelligent systems is leveraged for the greater good of the world. Cyber Valley GmbH, with locations in Stuttgart in Tübingen, is owned by the State of Baden-Württemberg and the Max Planck Society.  
     

    About the Carl-Zeiss-Stiftung  

    The Carl-Zeiss-Stiftung’s mission is to create an open environment for scientific breakthroughs. As a partner of excellence in science, it supports basic research as well as applied sciences in the STEM subject areas (science, technology, and mathematics). Founded in 1889 by the physicist and mathematician Ernst Abbe, the Carl-Zeiss-Stiftung is one of the oldest and biggest private science funding institutions in Germany. It is the sole owner of Carl Zeiss AG and SCHOTT AG. Its projects are financed from the dividend distributions of the two foundation companies.  

    About CELL’n’ROLL 

    CELL’n’ROLL, established two years ago, is driven by a team of three dedicated scientists with varied expertise, spanning engineering and medicine. Their collective passion lies in pioneering cutting-edge diagnostic systems for the detection of complex diseases, such as cancer. They envision a future where diagnostics are not only swift and precise but also accessible in resource-constrained settings by harnessing the power of robotics, artificial intelligence, and microfluidics. 

  • Cyber Valley celebrates new partnership with UTokyo IPC  

    Cyber Valley celebrates new partnership with UTokyo IPC  

    (Stuttgart, 30.04.2024) The strategic alliance is Cyber Valley's first collaboration with UTokyo IPC, promising a range of exciting opportunities between Europe and Japan. The LOI establishes the framework for various programs aimed at promoting innovation from cutting-edge research by building bridges between scientific, corporate and start-up networks.  

    Rebecca C. Reisch, Managing Director of Cyber Valley, remarks, “Together, this alliance is set to not only benefit our respective regions, but it will also make a significant contribution to innovation on a global scale. By pooling our shared commitment to excellence and advancements, we will foster a cross-cultural exchange of ideas towards AI and robotics.” 

    The highlights of this partnership include a dedicated market exploration trip, offering participating start-ups a unique opportunity to expand within international markets by connecting with essential partners, investors, and customers. Additionally, the collaboration offers the potential of non-dilutive funding to facilitate the growth of start-ups into these markets.  

    Exclusive networking opportunities with major corporations, including venture capital firms in the targeted markets, are also included in the program. Start-ups will benefit from monthly mentoring sessions over a six-month period, fostering sustainable growth and knowledge exchange. Additionally, they will have the chance to undertake proof-of-concept projects with corporate partners, further solidifying their market presence. 

    UTokyo IPC, established in 2016 by the University of Tokyo, operates as an investment company dedicated to expanding the University's innovative ecosystem. It drives innovation through three core business perspectives: investment, incubation (1st round), and human resource assistance (DeepTech Dive). It supports affiliated start-ups in five fields: healthcare/agriculture, space, robotics/hardware, IT/services, and artificial intelligence. The organization is a key player in Japanese innovation, having invested in and/or supported more than 140 start-ups so far. 

    Kosuke Ueda, President and CEO of UTokyo, elaborates, "UTokyo IPC, as a wholly owned subsidiary of the University of Tokyo, works diligently to create and nurture university-related startups and to build a startup ecosystem, in collaboration with a wide range of stakeholders including academia, government and municipalities, corporations, and venture capitals. In particular, we are intensifying our cooperation with Cyber Valley, which leads Europe in AI and robotics, leveraging its extensive research network and rich experience in societal implementation. This enhances the commercialization of valuable technologies and ideas from universities and research institutions beyond international frameworks. By doing so, we aim to provide value to Europe's advanced start-up ecosystem, fully leverage Japan's deep tech potential, and contribute to the creation of start-ups that tackle global challenges, thereby fostering the development of a global innovation ecosystem." 

    Through this collaboration, Cyber Valley and UTokyo IPC aim to foster innovation, accelerate growth in the advancement of artificial intelligence and modern robotics, and connect thriving communities for start-ups in both Europe and Japan. 

    About Cyber Valley 

    Cyber Valley is Europe’s largest and leading center for excellence in artificial intelligence and modern robotics. Its mission and public mandate are to advocate for research, development, application, and acceptance of technologies and methods in the field of intelligent systems. Cyber Valley encourages entrepreneurship by uniting scientific excellence with innovation and technology transfer. In addition, Cyber Valley facilitates critical reflection on the ethical and social implications of AI through public engagement. Cyber Valley envisions a future in which the full potential of intelligent systems is leveraged for the greater good of the world.   

    About UTokyo Innovation Platform Co., Ltd. (UTokyo IPC) 

    UTokyo IPC was established in 2016 as a wholly owned subsidiary of the University of Tokyo, aiming to further develop the venture ecosystem cultivated in and around the University of Tokyo. Alongside investing in over 60 university-related start-ups both domestically and internationally through two funds, UTokyo IPC provides comprehensive hands-on support, including human resource assistance. It also operates "1stRound", Japan's largest cross-university accelerator, co-sponsored by 14 universities. This program is designed to accelerate the commercialization of cutting-edge technologies and ideas emerging from universities. By collaborating with a broad spectrum of stakeholders, including universities, corporations, venture capitals, and the government, UTokyo IPC plays a pivotal role in the global innovation landscape, fostering cross-border collaboration and the development of transformative technologies. 

  • Amazon and Max Planck Society announce recipients of gift awards

    Amazon and Max Planck Society announce recipients of gift awards

    In line with that goal, the Science Hub is sponsoring the following research projects:

    • “Non-verbal interpersonal synchrony analysis tool (nVISA-online)”: Senya Polikovsky, research engineer, Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems

    “Interpersonal synchrony (In-Sync), the spontaneous synchronization of behavioral, affective, and even physiological responses in contexts of social interaction, offers a useful insight into the quality and smoothness of interactions between social partners. Automatic assessment of In-Sync could provide objective tools for studying the interactive abilities of people with psychiatric conditions and the degree of therapeutic alliance in psychotherapy, as well as online human-to-human and avatar-to-human interactions. Body movement dynamics are central to the analysis of In-Sync. Besides that, facial expression, gaze interaction, audio signals, and physiological measures such as electrodermal activity, heart rate variability, or breathing rates can be used to detect In-Sync. The goal of our proposed research is to extend In-Sync analysis to online scenarios. We would like to identify the instruments and the procedures for the detection of In-Sync in online therapy sessions.”

    • “Accurate 3D body shape and clothing estimation from a single image”: Gerard Pons-Moll, senior researcher, Max Planck Institute for Informatics, and professor, University of Tübingen, endowed by the Carl Zeiss Foundation

    “This research aims to reconstruct a 3-D digital human from a single RGB photograph, using a combination of 3-D neural implicit functions to represent worn garments and a parametric model to represent and control the pose and shape of the underlying body. A key novelty is to incorporate feedback in the deep body estimation network, ensuring that the 3-D body mesh is consistent with its projection onto the photo.”

    • “Learning clothing pressure fields via high-fidelity finite element analysis”: Gokhan Serhat, research scientist, Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems, and assistant professor, KU Leuven

    “Accurate estimation of clothing pressure on the human body is crucial to understanding physical factors that influence clothing comfort. Such estimation requires the ability to express contact pressure fields in terms of different body sizes and types and garment sizes and material properties. However, such pressure fields are generally too complex to be modeled by analytical methods. Experimentation also has certain drawbacks, since it does not provide information about internal stresses, and precise measurement of the contact pressure between a pair of curved soft bodies is difficult. The intricate anatomy of the human body may require elaborate finite-element models with several thousand elements for capturing deformation mechanics accurately. Such large models inherently induce high computational costs and are likely to suffer from the aforementioned numerical issues. The proposed study aims to address this problem by developing a deformation model based on deep neural networks trained with the data from finite-element analysis.”

    • “Material estimation of clothing for controllable human avatars”: Justus Thies, research group leader, Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems, and professor, Technical University Darmstadt

    “A key challenge for controllable human avatars is the reconstruction and animation of clothing. While data-driven, person-specific reconstruction methods show promising results, the extrapolation to novel poses with realistic deformations of clothing is limited. In contrast to data-driven methods, physics simulation can be used to model the dynamically changing clothing. In this project, we want to explore material estimation of human clothing for such simulations. Specifically, we are interested in predicting material properties such as stiffness or stretch that influence the motion-dependent deformation of the clothing. Besides these mechanical material properties, we are also interested in predicting material properties for the appearance of clothing that allow for re-renderings under novel poses.”

  • IntegraSkin, MiraVision, and SPAICE drive the Cyber Valley Start-up Network forward

    IntegraSkin, MiraVision, and SPAICE drive the Cyber Valley Start-up Network forward

    The three innovative start-ups offer groundbreaking solutions in their respective fields. IntegraSkin focuses on personalized medicine for skin diseases; MIRA Vision revolutionizes image analysis in microscopy and digital pathology through AI; and SPAICE pioneers autonomous space maintenance.  

    IntegraSkin combines molecular biological methods and AI to offer personalized medical treatment, focusing on chronic inflammatory skin conditions. Skin conditions affect 90% of individuals at some point in their lifetimes. Severe cases can disrupt lives and social interactions, often leading to a cycle of trial-and-error treatments. IntegraSkin is highly motivated to change this narrative, aiming to identify optimal treatments for dermatological conditions and provide effective solutions. 

    MIRA Vision is an AI-powered platform designed for quantitative image analysis in microscopy and digital pathology. It streamlines the process by offering fast, accurate, and reproducible analysis, significantly enhancing researchers' and pathologists' capabilities. With its innovative and patented technology, MIRA Vision integrates machine intelligence into microscopy, enabling users to analyze data at previously unattainable scales. Users can upload their image data, define regions of interest, select AI-assisted analysis, and explore the results, making complex analyses accessible in just four simple steps. 

    SPAICE offers the first fully autonomous solution for In-Orbit Services, specializing in tasks in the realm of space operations, including satellite life extension and debris removal. Their software is delivered through a plug-and-play servicing platform that includes sensors, robotic arms, and a computing unit. Their solutions can affordably enhance satellite lifespans by more than 50%, boost their revenue generation by more than 50%, and reduce collision risks by more than 20%. SPAICE enhances navigation by optimizing fuel consumption, enabling real-time onboard planning, and improving safety and precision in space operations. Founded by a top-tier team from prestigious institutions, SPAICE is currently validating multiple solutions through Proof-of-Concepts (PoCs) with leading European and US space entities. 

    These start-ups showcase the diverse applications of AI across various domains. Joining the Cyber Valley Start-up Network opens up numerous collaboration opportunities with the Cyber Valley Community. These three new additions will advance research and development in artificial intelligence, foster interdisciplinary synergy, and drive technological innovation forward. 

  • NEURA Robotics joins the Cyber Valley Start-up Network

    NEURA Robotics joins the Cyber Valley Start-up Network

    NEURA Robotics was founded in 2019 in Metzingen near Stuttgart. The start-up builds robotics assistants to collaborate naturally with humans. Among its products is the world’s first commercially available cognitive robot MAiRA, which integrates AI and a Touchless Safe Human Detection sensor technology to perceive its surroundings and easily adapt to different environments. Its other products include:
     

    • LARA, a Lightweight Agile Robotic Assistant that combines a lightweight design with industrial performance.         
    • MAV, a Multi-Sensing Autonomous Vehicle that can autonomously move and load any type of good
    • MiPA, an intelligent, versatile robotic assistant designed to support people in various domains

    MAV MAIRA

    With these robotic assistants, NEURA Robotics has laid the groundwork for humans and robots to work hand-in-hand. By enabling seamless interaction with humans in existing environments, NEURA eliminates the need for complex and expensive safety systems. Their guiding principle, “we serve humanity”, underscores their commitment to creating attractive, safer, and more sociable workspaces.

    NEURA Robotics’ unique approach is to develop key components in-house, including AI, control software, sensors and mechanical parts. Under the leadership of founder David Reger, they have made remarkable advances in environmental perception, control engineering, materials science and artificial intelligence, and are on track to bring the first cognitive humanoid robot to market.