More than 500 start-ups founded in Berlin

At the Office Club in Berlin-Prenzlauer Berg, people work in a coworking space.

The tense economic situation is also having an impact on the start-up scene in Berlin. Significantly fewer start-ups were founded in the capital in 2022 than a year earlier.

As the start-up association announced on Thursday, Berlin is still in first place in absolute numbers in the state comparison with 501 startups, but calculated per 100,000 inhabitants, there were slightly more startups in Munich (14.5 to 13.6). In 2021, 702 new start-ups were created in the capital.

Start-ups raise around 4.9 million in venture capital

Just on Wednesday, the consulting and auditing firm EY reported that Berlin startups had raised around 4.9 billion euros in venture capital in 2022. Although this was significantly less than in the extraordinarily good record year of 2021 (9.9 billion euros), Berlin continues to hold the top spot in this statistic. Economics Senator Stephan Schwarz (non-party) assessed the two statistics as "confirmation of the innovative strength and attractiveness of our start-ups". Berlin is Germany's number one and among the ten most sought-after addresses for venture capital internationally, he said.

Further potential at Berlin location

Above all, he sees further potential for the location in closer cooperation between science and industry. "As Germany's most successful research location, we should have the claim that our universities also top the startup rankings and patent lists," Schwarz said, according to the release. Nationwide, 2618 startups were recorded in 2022, according to the Startup Association - a drop of 18 percent compared to the previous year. In Berlin, the number fell by 29 percent.