Since 2025, FAU has also been a ZOHO Factory. ZOLLHOF – Tech Incubator has brought one of Germany’s ten coveted start-up factories to Bavaria. What a success!
ZOHO Factory now wants to double the start-up momentum in northern Bavaria. More than 20 locally based entrepreneurs and companies as well as investors from northern Bavaria, including FlixBus founder Daniel Krauss, US investor Albert Wenger, and philanthropist Suzanne Danzinger, are contributing financially to the entrepreneurial project.
FAU will set up so-called “Factory Labs” to provide even stronger support for DeepTech start-ups directly from the scientific community. Further Factory Labs are being established at partner universities: the University of Würzburg, the University of Bayreuth, and Coburg University. Additional locations are being set up at seven European universities, including in Paris and Madrid.
State-of-the-art TechSpace, talent promotion, and the first Franconian venture fund
ZOHO Factory aims to consistently translate scientific excellence into competitive start-ups. Targeted support services are designed to significantly increase both the number and quality of knowledge-based spin-offs. The new service portfolio comprises three pillars. Scholarships will enable significantly more entrepreneurial talents to start their own businesses.
In addition, the first Franconian venture fund is being launched to promote sustainable growth financing for early-stage startups. The establishment of a state-of-the-art TechSpace at FAU will provide access to cutting-edge technical infrastructure, not only for startups. Established companies will also be able to drive their own innovations there – in line with the concept of an open innovation ecosystem. Strategically important partners have been secured for this project in the form of Siemens Energy, Sparkasse Erlangen, and Fraunhofer IISB.