As a student in Mainz, I was fascinated by how different disciplines in biotech collaborate on ambitious projects to help people. My early career took me to Leipzig, where I co-led the Saxony Biotech Initiative biosaxony and served as Managing Director of BioNet Technologietransfer GmbH. In Jena, I supported the members of the BioInstrumente Association, founded in 1995. Here, I also experienced the importance of networks where people come together, align different opinions, and exchange ideas purposefully.

In 2010, I became the Managing Director of Technologiepark Heidelberg. I knew Heidelberg as one of Germany's top three biotech locations, alongside Berlin and Munich. What excited and continues to excite me is that almost all links in the value chain, from basic research to international large-scale industry, can be found in and around Heidelberg. You can find the right cooperation partner for any topic here – from mechanical engineering to chemistry to biology and medicine. This is not only a significant aspect of prosperity in the Rhine-Neckar region. Personally, these favorable location factors also offered me an outstanding opportunity to bring my previous experiences into three areas of responsibility at Technologiepark Heidelberg.

First, since its founding, Technologiepark Heidelberg had focused on creating, developing, and leasing spaces. These spaces proved to be an effective means of marketing Heidelberg as a science location internationally. We further developed this central pillar. For instance, in developing the Business Development Center (BDC), we were able to secure EU and state funding for the first time for a construction project of the technology park. Such funding opportunities increase the park's flexibility and allow us to place specialized real estate in the start-up sector. We were also able to create additional offerings, such as shared labs, together with BioLabs and their international partners.

A second area of responsibility we addressed at Technologiepark was the targeted promotion of start-ups and spin-offs. When I arrived in Heidelberg, there were well-functioning technology transfer departments primarily focused on patenting and licensing issues. Team building or the individual search for funding opportunities were not yet in focus. I convinced the city council to fund an independent start-up office in Heidelberg for the first time and provide the necessary personnel resources. Starting in 2014, Dr. Thomas Prexl built the start-up office with Dr. Helia Schönthaler, Dr. Raoul Haschke, and other colleagues from various institutions. This dynamic soon led to the founding of Heidelberg Startup Partners, an association of the essential technology transfer organizations in Heidelberg.

Accelerator programs quickly followed, including the Life Science Accelerator BW, Up2B, the AI LAB, and the KI-Garage. Through these formats, we get to know founders, evaluate their business models, and connect them with mentors, experts, and financiers. These programs are co-financed by the Ministry of Economic Affairs or the Baden-Württemberg Foundation. This increases the technology park's impact – not only financially but also through teamwork in consortia. We cooperate regionally with partners in Mannheim, Karlsruhe, Walldorf, Stuttgart, Ulm, Freiburg, and Konstanz. Internationally, we collaborate with actors we meet in Heidelberg's partner cities – Rehovot, Montpellier, or Palo Alto – as well as through the International Association of Science Parks (IASP).

Beyond space development and start-up promotion, I see a third area of responsibility: accelerating technology transfer to meet current and future challenges. Therefore, we analyze, with the AI-Garage, the digital transformation and artificial intelligence topics to identify research community ideas and how to turn them into businesses and products. Simultaneously, the AI LAB focuses on the needs of SMEs. In these and other sectors, we always rely on companies that turn research results into products – benefiting people, health, or sustainability. I believe that alongside diagnostics and healing, another focus in health will soon emerge in prevention. Heidelberg is well-positioned here, thanks to its strong biotechnological and pharmacological research. Another trend I see is in sustainability. In the long term, both the economy and society will have to reorient themselves. I am convinced that good solutions can be achieved when natural, humanities, and social sciences work closely together.

As part of the public sector, we can be active in the pre-competitive area of the value chain. Here, I see us primarily as facilitators, communicators, and enablers. We identify internationally significant gaps in research and application, provide laboratory space, and help young companies establish their business models. Once the start-ups are established, they continue their journey in the private sector. For young companies, financiers and customers are available, and they will face international competition. We turn to new, promising start-up ventures and support them as best we can.

This type of economic promotion is risky and time-consuming but particularly sensible and successful in locations like Heidelberg. I believe this is the only way to build innovative ecosystems that benefit the respective municipalities. Our networking efforts contribute significantly to urban development. In recent years, the business models of some long-established large companies have come under pressure. This has caused concern in many municipalities: a one-sided economic structure brings prosperity in good times but also significant risks in the event of an industry crisis. Heidelberg therefore relies on a healthy mix of highly innovative companies that turn excellent research results into products, grow, and bring jobs and tax revenue to the city. Outstanding examples include AI companies like Aleph Alpha or active ingredient manufacturers like AGC. You can't plan such successes, but you can make them more likely through the right start-up support.

A significant advantage of Heidelberg's location is its international attractiveness. Heidelberg is excellently connected via Frankfurt Airport and offers a high quality of life. Therefore, founders do not have to limit themselves to a regional applicant pool when building their companies but can attract the best talent from around the world to Heidelberg. This international attractiveness is further intensified through the cooperation of the individual technology sites in our region. Together, we can fill gaps – in Heidelberg's case, for example, in business administration and engineering sciences.

Collaboration in the region also means pooling available resources. In my view, it is more successful to build a key player in a region over the long term, one that plays a leading role with outstanding offerings and capabilities, rather than promoting a dozen mediocre players. For policymakers, this means not only analyzing current problems but also identifying the locations and people with the best solutions. Furthermore, funding instruments should interlock seamlessly. Only then can we ensure that the basic research, financed with significant resources, is later translated into businesses and products, allowing the innovation ecosystem and entrepreneurial spirit to thrive.

by Dr. Stefan Burkhardt

Download: Testimonial from Dr. André Domin