Enabling academic minds to co-create a more sustainable and socially impactful future

As a leading open innovation incubator, we bring together people, institutions, industries and organizations across all borders. We are united by a common goal: to positively change the world with sustainable and future-proof innovations. That's what drives us. The ekipa Academic Alliance aims to engage and enable the academic world through meaningful experiences and powerful methodological tools, giving academic minds the required voice and preparation to co-create future-oriented solutions and innovations that achieve a more sustainable and social world.
Our Alliance partners

Our Collaboration Formats for Students

Interdisciplinary and groundbreaking innovation potential unfolds on our innovation platform and in our programs. And this is how it works.
1: Integration into curriculum
Innovation projects are embedded within course curricula, adapted to course contents and structures. ekipa delivers seminars and workshops, helping students develop solutions and skills.
2: Guest lecture
If invited as a guest speaker, ekipa can deliver lectures with different content to students. Contents range from design thinking concepts over pitching to open innovation and “How to startup”.
3: Work assignments
ekipa has developed work assignments designed to guide students through an innovation process in which they take ownership of their own innovation projects.
4: Seminar Series by ekipa
This extracurricular activity, composed of 5-8 seminars, supports students in their skill development through comprising solutions for real-world innovation challenges.
5: Accelerator
Our accelerator product can be integrated into university context. Individual curricula consisting of sprints such as basic start-up law or finance help students found their own companies.
Get Started

From the Lecture Hall to the Next Big Thing

In an innovation project between Mainz University of Applied Sciences and the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, we were able to connect students with one of the largest newspapers in the Federal Republic. The result? An innovation challenge that not only provided valuable insights into the working world, but also gave the FAZ completely new perspectives.

Get Started
A real enrichment: The students benefited from the challenge, which was super prepared by ekipa, and were able to apply their strengths to a real project.
Prof. Julia Kühne, Hochschule Mainz

Turning theory into practice made a success

The HTW Dresden collaborated with ekipa during the fall semester of 2021 to integrate the program Germany 4.0 into the course "business planning". Together with the professors Ronny Baierl and René Thamm, ekipa actively supported the skill and solution development of the third semester bachelor students, delivering design thinking and feedback sessions in a virtual environment. In the end, three teams from the HTW Dresden -more than from any other participating university - were successful with their submitted solutions, venturing further into the finals to work in direct contact with the organizations towards social impact.

Get Started
Teaching students not only theoretical expertise, but also directly applying it to real-world issues was the basic idea behind our cooperation with ekipa as part of a curricular integration.
Prof. René Thamm, HTW Dresden

Universities and ekipa? It's a match!

Within a university cooperation you are part of a global network that wants to shape the world together socially and ecologically, sustainably and economically.
Stability & Structure
Our innovation programs can be integrated on a yearly or semester basis, offering between 3 and 10 organizations with different real-world problems wrapped in comprehensive and compelling cases.
Skill development & enablement
Working on real-world business cases gives students a voice to change societies and empowers them to take ownership of their innovation projects, actively fostering the development of future skills.
Material support & engagement
A standardized, but individually adjustable document, the “submission template”, determines scope and content of solutions to manage expectations and guide solution development.
Certification of efforts
Students receive certificates for their skill development with respect to design thinking, business modelling, and the MURAL digital co-working software.
Collaboration is key
Generally, IP rights stay with innovators to support putting theory to practice, initiate research projects, co-create the outcome, and build large and relevant networks.
Flexible collaboration formats
Academic alliances are organized in collaboration with professors and academic personnel to flexibly accommodate for universities and students needs.
Networking the future
A key aspect of what we do is bringing people together across contexts, making networking a central aspect of what we do, and providing opportunities to bring theory to practice in multifaceted ways.
Lived diversity & interdiscipliniarity
Diversity and interdiscipliniarity is not only an essential asset for innovation, but also for us as ekipa and will, therefore, always have an influence in our projects.

Running & upcoming innovation programs & challenges

We offer a variety of challenges. Register now for free on our innovation platform to stay up to date about current & upcoming open innovation challenges. Let's innovate together.
Adhesive Technology for Drinking Water Pipes
Sound-absorbing Ceiling goes Aesthetic
Sustainable Facade Systems
Upcoming Challenges
Collaborate with Aliaxis to make a lasting impact on the future of fluid management.

As resources such as water are becoming scarce, the demand for clean water is on the rise. In this challenge, we aim to find novel adhesive approaches for bonding pipes that not only stay ahead of regulatory shifts but also champion sustainability. Collaborate with Aliaxis to make a lasting impact on the future of fluid management.

Join now!
Past Projects
Collaborate with Knauf to transform soundproof ceilings into aesthetically pleasing design elements

Get ready to redefine the concept of sound-absorbing ceilings and create a visually appealing solution using existing or new materials. Join our innovation challenge and help Knauf transform soundproof ceilings into aesthetically pleasing design elements that meet architect´s needs and can be easily integrated into all kinds of rooms.

Join now!
Past Projects
Be part and co-create groundbreaking innovations for facade fastening systems with Würth.

As the world faces pressing climate concerns, sustainable construction takes center stage. Be part and co-create groundbreaking innovations for facade fastening systems with Würth. Tackle the problem of thermal bridges through new materials/ methods or build circular approaches that help to reuse deconstructed panels/ cladding/ sub-constructions.

Join now!
Past Projects
Stay tuned for upcoming challenges!

Fancy a challenge? Our platform has got you covered! From AI to HealthTech and Finance, we offer plenty of challenges to foster sustainability, digitization and social impact. Plus, it's totally free to register - just scroll down for our past challenges or find programs that tickle your fancy. Let's innovate together - join us today for an opportunity not to be missed!

Stay tuned!
Past Projects

Contact Information

Katharina Heby
Head of University Relations & Innovation Consultant
hello@ekipa.de
+49 176 17920076

Send us a message

Kontaktformular Default (eng)

Cookie Consent with Real Cookie Banner