Startup Report Ruhr 2024 (Startup-Verband)

Summary

• Per capita, almost nine times as much capital is invested in startups across Germany as in the Ruhr region.p.5
• Only 44% of founders rate cooperation with established companies positively, and just 38% see a positive trend.p.5
• The Gründerallianz Ruhr is broadly perceived and regarded as a central actor for cooperation among cities and regions (89%).p.5
• Together with NRW.Bank and partners, around 35 million euros of venture capital was provided to the region through Gründerfonds Ruhr.p.2

Key insights

1. The Gründerallianz Ruhr has had contact with around 500 startups from the Ruhr region.p.2
2. Financing remains the biggest challenge for the Ruhr startup ecosystem.p.5
3. Private environment and regional attachment are the most important motives for founding in the Ruhr region.p.5
4. The report identifies three fields of action: bringing startups and established companies together, using regional attachment as an asset, and prioritizing access to capital.p.6
5. From 2024, the BridgeBuilder initiative follows, focused on networking between startups and corporates.p.3