PSP Conference

What a day! 134 participants, five startup pitches, inspiring talks, lively discussions, and plenty of networking: the PSP Conference 2026 on 24 September brought together the people shaping the future of startups and innovation at the Potsdam Science Park.

Check out the photo gallery from the event below, and here is a quick recap of the conference day:

Under the theme “RESTART – From Idea to Scale-up: Start-ups, Innovation, and Strategies for Success” founders, researchers, investors, business leaders, policymakers, and startup-support organisations came together to exchange ideas, share experiences, and talk about what it really takes to turn an idea into a successful company. The day was moderated by Tina Knop.

The conference kicked off with welcome remarks from Agnes von Matuschka, CEO of Standortmanagement Golm GmbH, Noosha Aubel, Mayor of the City of Potsdam, and Prof. Oliver Günther, President of the University of Potsdam, who joined via video.

The opening keynote by Ghazaleh Madani, CEO and Founder of CanChip GmbH, set the tone for the day. In “From Personal Motivation to Global Ambition: Building a Deep-Tech Startup in Drug Development”, she shared her personal journey and showed how scientific ideas can develop into ambitious deep-tech businesses with global potential.

Next came the first panel, “Erfolgreich skalieren: Von Brandenburg in die Welt”. Robert Förster from Radiozeit GmbH, Dr. Jonas Witt from mama health technologies, Dr. Ben M.W. Illigens from Data4Life, and Christoph Miethke, CEO and Founder of Christoph Miethke GmbH & Co. KG, shared their experiences of building and growing companies. The discussion looked at the opportunities, challenges, and lessons learned when taking a startup from Brandenburg to international markets.

Then it was time for one of the most energetic parts of the morning: the Startup Pitch. Five startups took the stage and had just a few minutes to convince the audience of their ideas. Dr. Komali Valishetti presented RENATRIX, Dr. Jens Balko presented Syntura, Anna Maria Ullmann presented Yeda by CoreCreation GmbH, PD Dr. Philipp Hillmeister and Timotheus Kageneck presented Arterial Intelligence, and Jan Degen presented kez.biosolutions GmbH.

The Startup Pitch Award went to Yeda by CoreCreation GmbH, represented by Anna Maria Ullmann. With its innovative solution for pelvic-floor health, Yeda impressed the audience and took home the award.

After the pitches, the pace shifted from the stage to the foyer. A speed-dating session gave participants two minutes at a time to meet new people, followed by lunch and plenty of informal networking. It was a great opportunity to continue conversations from the morning and make new connections.

The afternoon focused on the wider innovation and startup ecosystem. Johannes Kraume from Nucleate Germany talked about empowering the next generation of biotech leaders. Hannah Payette Peterson from JUNI – Just Unite to Innovate shared insights on the journey “From Science to Startup.” Johannes Zier, Head of Startup Service at Potsdam Transfer, University of Potsdam, explored how researchers can be supported “From Lab to Launch.” Lars Schulze, Co-founder of Whaaat AI and Initiator of Havel Valley, presented the Havel Valley community and its role in connecting entrepreneurs and innovators.

The discussion then moved to the national startup ecosystem. Oliver Hunke, Head of the Division for Innovative Start-ups and Internationalisation of Start-ups at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, looked at Startup Factories and their potential to become a driving force for more deep-tech startups in Germany.

Of course, no startup conference would be complete without talking about money and financing. The panel “Finanzierungsstrategien für Start-ups: Perspektiven von VCs und Business Angels” brought together Anna Wanderwitz, Thilo Veil, Dr. Inga Köhler, and Dr. Christian Kannemeier. They discussed different financing options and gave insights into the perspectives of VCs and Business Angels — and what founders should consider when looking for investment.

The final part of the programme brought the experts even closer to the participants. Tobias Wittich, Business Angel of the Year 2025, spoke about “From Idea to Scale-up: What Investors Look for in Future Champions”. Thilo Veil focused on “Strategic Partnerships: A Key to Startup Success”, while Dr. Boris Karcher from Dimler&Karcher shared ideas on “Boost your Growth!” and Dr. Jonas Witt explored “The Culture to Win – How Great Teams Succeed”.

Participants could then join one of four smaller Q&A sessions and put their questions directly to the experts. The day wrapped up with a plenary recap, the Startup Pitch Award Ceremony, and closing remarks before everyone headed back into the foyer for one final hour of networking.

A day full of ideas and connections

The PSP Conference 2026 – RESTART showed just how much is happening across the startup and innovation ecosystem in Potsdam, Brandenburg, and beyond. From scientific ideas and first-time founders to investors, established companies, support organisations, and policymakers, the conference brought very different perspectives together in one place.

And that was perhaps the strongest message of the day: scaling a startup is not a journey you make alone. It takes ideas, people, knowledge, financing, partnerships, the right networks — and plenty of opportunities to connect.

With 134 participants, five exciting startup pitches, one award-winning startup, and a full day of exchange and networking, PSP Conference 2026 was a lively meeting point for everyone interested in turning innovation into impact and taking ideas from the lab and the first concept all the way to scale-up.

Did you miss it? Take a look at the pictures below and get a glimpse of the day!

About PSP Conference 2026 – RESTART

PSP Conference 2026 was organized by Standortmanagement Golm GmbH together with a large number of partners: Startup-Verband Landesgruppe Brandenburg, Boris Karcher, Potsdam Transfer of the University of Potsdam, WFBB – Economic Development Agency Brandenburg, Fraunhofer High-Performance Center for the Integration of Biological and Physical-Chemical Material Functions, and Economic Development Unit of the City of Potsdam.

PSP Conference 2026 was also supported by Berliner Volksbank, Conpro IT Solutions GmbH, Dimler & Karcher, HTGF, Mettler-Toledo GmbH, Radiozeit GmbH, Süddeutsche Datenschutzgesellschaft mbH, Vossius & Partner Rechtsanwälte mbB, and WFBB – Economic Development Agency Brandenburg.

This event was co-funded by the European Union and the State of Brandenburg.