All NewsLast month at Cyber Valley: June
June 2026 highlights
A lot was happening at Cyber Valley last month. Here’s a quick roundup of our highlights from June. Find out how Cyber Valley’s mission to translate excellent research into real-world applications for a better future for everyone came to life.
TECH by Handelsblatt in Heilbronn
Cyber Valley enjoyed three exciting days at TECH by Handelsblatt in Heilbronn from May 31 to June 2.
On June 1, our panel “From Research to Business: AI and Robotics Start-ups from Cyber Valley” brought together founders from across the Cyber Valley Start-up Network to show how excellent research is being transformed into innovative products, companies, and technologies.
A big thank you to our speakers: Laura Neusser (Optocycle), Frederik Wulle (Collectu), Maximilian Bode (Biocompile), Lisa Raab (Spotium), Richard Hans Schreiber (Tabularis.AI), John Achim Holzhauer (Semorai GmbH), Partha Ghosh and Felix Leeb (MaiTY), as well as Anand Waghmare (Yugen Space).
These start-ups emerged from our academic partner institutions—Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems (MPI-IS), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), and the Universities of Stuttgart and Tübingen—and exemplify the strength of our ecosystem in turning research excellence into entrepreneurial success.
Another special moment was the visit of Cem Özdemir, Minister President of Baden-Württemberg, Petra Olschowski, State Minister of Science, Research and the Arts of Baden-Württemberg, and Karsten Wildberger, Federal Minister for Digital Transformation and Government Modernization, to the exhibition area, underscoring the growing importance of AI, robotics, and deep-tech innovation for Baden-Württemberg.
IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA) in Vienna
On June 1–5, Cyber Valley had a fantastic time attending the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA) in Vienna for the first time! The conference brought together top researchers, industry leaders, and robotics enthusiasts to share ideas and advance the field of robotics. We enjoyed engaging conversations and connecting with leading AI researchers from the Cyber Valley Community and beyond.
Through fostering connections with researchers, we're turning AI and robotics research into real-world applications that will help secure Europe’s technological and economic future.
Cyber Valley AI Incubator Batch #8
In June, we welcomed the participants of Batch #8 of the Cyber Valley AI Incubator in Tübingen for the first three days of an exciting multi-week journey.
Here are some highlights from the first weeks:
Day 1 opened with a welcome from Leila El Masri (MPI-IS) and Paul-David Bittner (Cyber Valley). Participants explored the public funding landscape with Daniel Heblik (Startup Center Tübingen), sharpened their understanding of customers and business models with Michael Raschke (Blickshift GmbH), and learned how to turn AI ideas into viable ventures using the Business Model Canvas with Jörg Büechl (ESB Business School, Reutlingen University).
Day 2 brought founder and investor perspectives: Katrin Renz (Physical AI) shared her path from research to start-up, Björn Brenner (NEXTGN) spoke about making investment decisions, and Franziska Ivens (Silicon Allee Venture Lab at Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Institute HHI) explored different funding models from lab to market. In the Ask-an-Investor panel, Franziska Ivens, together with Chris Ferle (Bosch Ventures), and Benedikt Battke (Grazia Equity) answered questions on funding, investing, and building scalable start-ups.
Day 3 brought together legal expertise and entrepreneurial thinking as teams explored how to move responsibly from ideas to prototypes. Thanks to our speakers for guiding the teams:
- Benjamin Krahmer (DORNKAMP Law Firm) for sharing practical insights on AI regulation and key legal challenges.
- Kevin Sartori (Auterion) for leading an engaging venture-building workshop, guiding teams in turning ideas into early prototypes.
The Cyber Valley AI Incubator empowers scientists and entrepreneurs with promising AI ideas to begin their entrepreneurial journey. Over several weeks, participants receive hands-on training, mentoring, and access to leading experts, founders, and investors. Each full-day session focuses on a specific topic—from team building and market analysis to prototyping, business models, and pitching—equipping participants with actionable insights and a growing network.
The Cyber Valley AI Incubator is funded by the Carl-Zeiss-Stiftung and organized by MPI-IS.
Photo: MPI-IS
Campus Tour in Tübingen
It was a pleasure to welcome so many interested guests to our Campus Tour in Tübingen on June 11!
As part of our new Cyber Valley Innovation Campus Tours series, participants get an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at Europe’s largest center for excellence in AI and robotics. In addition to an introductory presentation, guests can join a guided tour of the Campus in Tübingen and learn more about the people, research, and innovation driving the ecosystem.
At Cyber Valley, our mission is to translate AI and robotics research into real-world solutions that benefit people, industry, and society. Engaging with the public and opening our doors to the community is an important part of that mission.
The next Campus Tour in Tübingen (held in German) will take place on Thursday, July 16. We look forward to welcoming you! Sign up here.
Photo: Cyber Valley
Cyber Valley Impulse on cybersecurity
On June 16, the Cyber Valley Impulse on cybersecurity took place in Stuttgart. Experts from science and industry shared insights on applications of intelligent systems in government technology and cybersecurity. Advances in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data-driven approaches are reshaping public services, digital governance, and cybersecurity, creating new opportunities for secure, efficient, and citizen-centric innovation
Thanks to our excellent speakers and contributors: Jonas Ditz (Bundesamt für Sicherheit in der Informationstechnik), Maximian Geyer (Fraunhofer IPA), Mirko Tochtermann (oneAI GmbH), Richard Hans Schreiber (Tabularis.AI), and Aleksandar Hudic (Schwarz Digits).
The next Impulse on agriculture, sustainability, and the environment will take place on July 8 in Weinstadt. You can find out more here.
Open Science Day at University of Stuttgart
On Saturday June 27, we had a great time at the University of Stuttgart’s Science Day on the Vaihingen Campus!
We enjoyed welcoming so many curious visitors to our booth and sharing insights into AI research, innovation, and the Cyber Valley Innovation Campus. A special thank you to IRIS (Interchange Forum for Reflecting on Intelligent Systems) at the University of Stuttgart for organizing our joint booth and creating a great space for conversations about both AI innovation and its societal impact.
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