Die Höhle der Löwen - today with Frank Thelen and Jochen Schweizer

The show for the anniversary of DHDL. On September 23, 2024, Frank Thelen and Jochen Schweizer return in the anniversary episode of the start-up show. Five start-ups compete for an investment.
On September 23, 2024, the TV show "Die Höhle der Löwen" will celebrate its anniversary episode on VOX. The two investors from the very beginning, Frank Thelen and Jochen Schweizer, are returning for the tenth anniversary. Together with the lions Carsten Maschmeyer, Judith Williams and Ralf Dümmel, they once again take a seat in the investors' chairs.
The start-ups on the show
In the anniversary episode, five start-up teams present their products and services. Among the participants is Brigitte Steinmeyer from Switzerland, who is making another attempt to secure a deal with her new "Diamazing Beauty Serum". Another startup called DogScan is presenting an innovative method for the early detection of lung cancer with the help of specially trained dogs.
The craftsman tool "Dübelix" is also presented in the show, which is designed to make removing dowels easier. In addition, the start-up LYKAIA presents functional food based on mushrooms, while RocketTutor from Munich offers an AI-based math learning platform that prepares pupils individually for exams.
It remains to be seen whether the founding teams will manage to win over investors. At the very least, the anniversary episode promises exciting deals and emotional moments with the original lions.
10 years of DHDL - a classification
10 years of "Die Höhle der Löwen" - and we look back with a smile and a tear. We at Startbase in particular like to be critical of the show. Ten years ago, the concept was new in Germany and attracted large sections of the population to the television. In fact, linear television wasn't dead back then, even Stefan Raab was still on air, but that's another story. The founders of today don't even know or remember that.
In addition to the nostalgia, you have to give the show credit for the learning effect. Germany learned what a pitch was, heard about "Working Capital" for the first time and found the products on the nation's bargain tables the next day. There are probably very few households that have not owned a DHDL product at some point. And then there were the founders, some of whom are remembered for their quirky, likeable manner.
Distorted image of start-ups
What also remains, however, is the image of start-ups conveyed in DHDL, which has little to do with reality. In the show, the path of a founder is reduced to a brief moment of decision - the pitch. The real challenge often consists of years of hard work that is neither glamorous nor suitable for TV. Many of the founding processes that take place away from the cameras remain invisible.
The lions themselves have also left a lasting impression - not only through their investments, but also through their personalities and business models. What remains is the memory of their successes, but also of their failures. We remember how they made their fortunes and how they lost some of them. The question of whether they actually created added value for the founders and society also remains.

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