Unicorn Report 2026: Opportunities and Need for Action for Germany as a Startup and Scaleup Location (Bitkom)

Summary

• The US has 724 unicorns with a total valuation of $3.39T, China 158 and the EU 122 with a total of $0.30T.p.3
• Germany currently has 29 unicorns, six of which were added in 2025, mostly in AI and other technology-intensive fields.p.4
• Berlin accounts for about 45 percent of German unicorns, down from over 50 percent, ahead of Bavaria with 38 percent.p.4
• 50 percent of surveyed unicorn founders expect better conditions for tech companies in Germany within 12 months, 21 percent more than the year before.p.5
• 79 percent expect at least one IPO of a German unicorn within 12 months, but only 29 percent expect it to take place in Germany.p.6
• 57 percent of founders feel valued in Germany and only 7 percent would choose the USA again, after 24 percent the year before.p.7
• 79 percent name bureaucracy reduction as one of their top 3 policy measures.p.8

Key insights

1. Only 7 percent of surveyed founders would found again in the USA, compared with 24 percent in the previous year, while 57 percent would choose Germany.p.7
2. 64 percent see market access and EU harmonisation as a central priority, up from 41 percent in 2025.p.9
3. 43 percent of founders see a need for action on access to growth capital, 8 percentage points more than in 2025.p.9
4. 27 different legal systems in the EU raise scaling costs for startups and scaleups.p.9
5. The planned expansion of the WIN initiative to €25 billion is seen as a key lever for growth capital in later financing stages.p.9
6. Half of the founders expect an IPO of a German unicorn in the USA and 7 percent in another EU country.p.6
7. 57 percent of founders feel valued in Germany and 36 percent do not, compared with 41 percent and 35 percent in 2025.p.7
8. The survey covers 14 unicorn founders out of 25 eligible among the 29 German unicorns.p.2
9. None of the new unicorns of 2025 has a female founder.p.4