German Startup Monitor: Overall tone positive

How is the German startup scene doing? This question is addressed annually by the German Startup Monitor of the associated association, the latest edition of which has now been published. The general tone among startup founders is positive: 58% of those surveyed expect their economic situation to improve in the coming months, and as many as 80% anticipate an upturn by the end of 2025.

In order to clearly identify current problems and challenges and bring transparency to the German startup landscape, the Monitor focuses on various topics – from founders to markets to finances. Key findings: Profitability, B2B, and sustainability are the focus for many of those surveyed. The former is rated higher than rapid growth, for example, and around 48% classify themselves as part of the “green economy.” However, only 37.5% rate the opportunities for cooperation with the established economy as good – in 2023, the figure was still 40.5%, with the peak in corporate cooperation already reached in 2020.

The employees in startups are also examined: On the one hand, the high proportion of international or foreign employees, which stands at 30.8%, is striking. On the other hand, the proportion of female founders has fallen from 20.7% last year to 18.8%.

It is also striking that the desire to start a business usually arises in youth (29.6%) or during studies/training. The association's chairwoman is therefore calling for an early approach in the education system to strengthen the German “entrepreneurial spirit” and specifically promote innovation. Other expectations expressed by startups with regard to politics are primarily progress in digital administration (58.5%) and making the labor market more flexible.

We were also interested in the following topics:

• Equality: To what extent do gender-based stereotypes appear in job advertisements, and are they job-specific? This question was examined in a large-scale study by the IAB, which evaluated almost one million job advertisements. The results can be found here.

• Data protection: Using your time on train journeys to do your normal work? For reasons of confidentiality and data protection, this is not necessarily a good idea. The Association for Specialists and Managers explains what you need to pay particular attention to.

• AI in the workplace: The use of AI in everyday working life is becoming increasingly widespread and popular. But like any technical support, AI tools are also prone to errors. t3n knows who is liable for such AI errors.

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