With the grant from NRW.BANK's MID program, small and medium-sized enterprises can strengthen their innovative capacity and resilience. The program offers financial support of up to EUR 15,000 for investments in digital products, security, and processes, and up to EUR 48,000 for hiring university graduates who implement innovative projects in the company. This way, your company can remain strong in the market in the future. You can find more information here.

17 applications have been received by the Young Entrepreneurs for this year's founding competition JU DO! 👏 Many thanks to all founders! We hope to get to know you on the final evening, whether on stage or in the audience, or at one of our other events. The planning team is, as always, fascinated by the range of founding projects and wishes the jury, which will meet in a few weeks, good deliberations. There are only just under three months left until the final evening. If November 6th is not yet in your calendar, now is the time. 🗓️ Block out the evening from 5 p.m. It will start at 6 p.m. at the latest! We are already looking forward to this year's location: VETTER Industrie GmbH in Burbach! Photo credit: Carsten Schmale, Final Evening JU DO! 2025

The German Startup Monitor 2026 has launched and every voice counts! 📈 The Startup Monitor from the Federal Association of German Startups is the largest and most important startup study in Germany. Not a study for the drawer, but the opinion barometer of founders here on the ground: What's on your mind right now? Where are the bottlenecks? What do you need to get started? Your input ultimately lands where it belongs: with politicians, the media, and on the agenda of the most important voices in the startup ecosystem. Why the 10 minutes are worth it: → Your challenges are put on the table of decision-makers. → You make your reality visible and thus create momentum for the location as a whole. → Every region counts, especially away from the well-known hotspots. No matter which federal state or industry: we want all perspectives. The more startups participate, the sharper the picture. Join in: http://umfrage.deutscherstartupmonitor.de/278dsm26