Startup news for the weekend week 7/26

Funding

simmetry.ai receives 330,000 euros for platform to generate synthetic AI training data

The AI startup simmetry.ai has received funding of 330,000 euros as part of the High-Tech Incubator (HTI) program of the Lower Saxony development bank NBank. The company, which emerged from the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) in 2024, is developing a platform for creating photorealistic, fully annotated synthetic training data for computer vision applications. The funds will be used to build a scalable self-service solution that developers can use to generate data for tasks such as object recognition, semantic segmentation or 3D pose estimation on demand.

Anthropic raises 30 billion US dollars at a valuation of 380 billion

The AI company Anthropic has raised 30 billion US dollars in a Series G financing round, valuing it at 380 billion US dollars. The round was led by GIC and Coatue, with other investors also participating. The capital will be used for research, product development and infrastructure expansion, particularly in the area of enterprise AI applications and software development. According to the company, sales have grown to an annual run rate of around 14 billion US dollars in less than three years, driven primarily by the increasing use of the Claude AI platform by large companies and developers. Anthropic also wants to use the funds to further develop its models, provide new functions and expand availability via large cloud platforms.

AI start-up Overmind receives 2 million pounds in funding

Overmind has closed a £2 million funding round, led by Osney Capital with participation from several other investors. The start-up develops infrastructure for AI systems that make independent decisions and carry out complex workflows. The aim is to adapt existing technical foundations, which have so far primarily been designed for predictable software, to the requirements of autonomously acting AI agents. Overmind relies on the analysis of production data to continuously improve the behavior of the systems. According to the company, the technology is already being tested in regulated sectors such as fintech, healthcare and legal services; a design partner has achieved performance improvements of 25 percent as well as significant cost reductions.

Circle Health secures 9 million euros in seed funding for expansion in Germany

Berlin-based healthcare start-up Circle Health has closed a €9 million seed financing round to drive its nationwide expansion. The company already operates clinics in Berlin and Munich and is planning further locations in Düsseldorf and Hamburg. Circle Health offers an integrated platform for holistic, patient-centered care that combines modern diagnostics, functional medicine and holistic therapies. With a Net Promoter Score of over 90 and more than 7,000 patients, the start-up focuses on proactive, data-driven healthcare. The financing round is supported by Atlantic, CRB Health Tech and Calm/Storm, among others.

Awards & Events

10 years of The Founder Summit: Germany's largest business festival celebrates its anniversary

The Founder Summit celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2026 and returns to the RheinMain CongressCenter Wiesbaden on April 11 and 12 with over 17,000 participants. Germany's largest business festival, which is organized by Entrepreneur University, brings together founders, entrepreneurs, investors and visionaries and offers 16 stages, 120 speakers and practical insights into topics such as AI, finance, marketing and mindset. For the anniversary, over 175 exhibitors will present themselves in the Expo Area, while the Start-up Stadium offers young founders the chance to pitch their business models in front of a large audience. With prominent headliners such as Christian Lindner, Wolfgang Grupp, Sara Al Madani and Jochen Schweizer, the event focuses on inspiration, networking and the promotion of innovation, accompanied by masterclasses, interactive formats and an after-show concert at the end.

Cooperations & partnerships

TUM launches Security and Defense Alliance with partners from research and industry

The Technical University of Munich (TUM) and the Bundeswehr University Munich have founded the "TUM Security and Defense Alliance" together with 15 other partners from industry, start-ups and the public sector. The interdisciplinary innovation hub was launched at the TUM Campus Ottobrunn-Taufkirchen and aims to strengthen European security and defense capabilities as well as technological sovereignty. The aim is to systematically network and expand the existing expertise in research, development and industry in the greater Munich area. The alliance covers all relevant domains: Air, space, land, sea as well as cyber and information space. It also pursues application-oriented research, the development of test infrastructures, the promotion of innovations and start-ups as well as the national and international networking of science, industry and public stakeholders.

]init[ AG and KIX agree partnership for digital service management

]init[ AG for digital communication and the open source software provider KIX Service Software have announced a partnership to jointly offer digital, sovereign service management solutions for the public and private sector. As part of the collaboration, ]init[ is supplementing its vendor-neutral ITSM portfolio with the open source solution "KIX Pro", which can be used for service desk, IT service management and enterprise service management. The aim is to provide customers with a combination of IT consulting, project experience and a modular, ITIL4-certified service management platform that can be operated both on-premises and in European cloud environments. The cooperation responds to the growing demand for data sovereign, EU-based IT solutions and is intended to provide organizations with easy access to appropriate technologies and consulting services.

Personnel

Eva Neugebauer and David Rau form new management team at Löwenzahn Organics

Eva Neugebauer and David Rau have been jointly managing the organic baby food company Löwenzahn Organics since January 2026. The new dual leadership aims to drive the further development of science-based infant formula, ensure greater transparency in the market and, following the expansion of the business in Germany, strengthen international expansion, initially with a focus on South Korea. Founded in 2016, the company now offers a range of 16 products for babies and mothers and is planning further additions. Neugebauer brings experience from food e-commerce and direct marketing, while Rau has many years of experience in drugstore retail, particularly in the baby segment. Together, they will expand the company's growth, innovation and positioning in the organic infant formula market.

Franziska Teubert leaves Startup-Verband at the end of March

Franziska Teubert, Managing Director of the Startup Association, will be leaving her position on March 31, 2026 to join Tesla. After seven years at the helm of the association, she has decided to take on a new professional challenge. During her time in office, Teubert, together with Managing Director Christoph Stresing, was responsible for a comprehensive restructuring and contributed to the financial stabilization and strategic development of the organization. Under her leadership, the association established itself more strongly as a representative of the interests of the German startup scene and expanded central platforms for visibility and networking, including the German Startup Awards. In future, Christoph Stresing will continue to lead the association on his own.

Further news

Moldova Innovation Technology Park exceeds the USD 1 billion revenue mark in 2025

The Moldova Innovation Technology Park (MITP) achieved a total turnover of the equivalent of more than 1 billion US dollars for the first time in 2025, reaching a new high. According to preliminary data, the revenues of the resident companies rose to 18.9 billion Moldovan lei, which corresponds to a growth of 24.3 percent compared to 2024 and a tenfold increase since the park was founded in 2018. The number of companies registered in the park grew to 2,725, while around 25,800 professionals are employed, mainly in software-related and export-oriented services. Exports account for the majority of turnover at around 88.5 percent, with companies from a total of 44 countries represented. Further moderate growth is expected in 2026, accompanied by initiatives to integrate new technologies such as artificial intelligence more closely and to converge with European digital standards.

bunch launches "bunch tax" and integrates accounting and tax advice into one platform

With "bunch tax", the Berlin-based fintech bunch has expanded its end-to-end platform for private market fund operations to include accounting and tax advice. The new solution combines a data-driven software infrastructure, contextual AI and the expertise of leading accounting and tax experts to speed up reporting processes for fund managers by up to 80%. Previously, fund managers in Germany had to coordinate several service providers; bunch tax bundles these processes in a central, intelligent ecosystem. The platform works according to the "expert-in-the-loop" principle, in which automated processes are continuously validated by specialist checks. Customers such as Merantix see the solution as a decisive step towards digitalized, scalable workflows for fund administration in Germany.

vly presents new organic pea-based milk alternatives

The Berlin-based food tech company vly presented two new organic milk alternatives at the BIOFACH trade fair: "vly Bio Barista" and "vly Bio High Protein". The products are based on a specially developed organic pea variety with a neutral, mild taste profile, which was created in cooperation with the plant breeding company KWS. The peas are grown in Germany and production takes place in Brandenburg. While Bio Barista is specially designed for coffee and hot drinks, Bio High Protein, with 40 grams of protein per liter, is aimed at a high-protein diet. Both products are based on organic pea protein, are free from lactose, gluten, soya and nuts and are designed to impress with their short ingredient lists and optimized taste and functionality.