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Berlin

About Berlin

With its 3.7 million inhabitants, the German capital has undergone a fantastic development in the last decade. The city’s famous creativity and outstanding research landscape have been complemented by considerable economic power. Berlin has become a magnet for talent from all over the world and the birthplace and home of a constantly growing number of technology companies. 

Around 30% of all German start-ups are based in Berlin. The city’s share of total VC financing in Germany over the last years has been between 50 and 70%. Berlin offers lots of support both to start-ups and innovative SMEs. The excellent research facilities, innovation hubs of many international corporations as well as investors all form an extremely productive ecosystem. 

  1. Capital of Germany – Europe’s economic powerhouse
  2. Leading European hub for start-ups
  3. Unrivalled concentration of science and research
  4. Magnet for talent from all over the world

Reasons for Berlin

Berlin is a centre for innovation. The strengths of Berlin’s dynamic economy are particularly in the fields of ICT, media and creative industries, healthcare, energy technology, transport and photonics.

Berlin is also one of the most attractive cities worldwide, especially for young people. The Millennial Cities Ranking assesses 110 cities according to job opportunities, cost of living, openness and tolerance and the fun factor. In the overall ranking of 17 individual criteria, Berlin came first in 2018, ahead of Montreal, London, Amsterdam and Toronto.

As the capital of the biggest national economy in Europe, it goes without saying that Berlin plays a pivotal role in European Union decision-making.

 

Success story

A commitment to Berlin and Germany: at the time-honoured Siemens industrial estate in Berlin’s Spandau district, Siemens AG will make its largest single investment ever in the company’s history in Berlin. In the coming years, up to EUR 600 million are to be invested in a new world of working and living: Siemensstadt (‘Siemens City’) 2.0. This project aims to transform this large industrial area into a modern, urban district of the future. A further goal is to strengthen selected key technologies and innovation fields in collaboration with the scientific and business communities. To make this possible, this section of Berlin is to become home to centres of research and expertise, to start-up incubators and to scientific institutes and companies alike. 

126,000

strong workforce

30,000

scientists in battery-related fields

12,000

Engineering graduates

Charging the future

Efficient battery technology is driving the future – literally, in terms of mobility, and as energy storage for numerous other applications. Many companies in Berlin are at the cutting edge of these developments. And because the city with its thriving startup scene is a magnet for young people, it has the necessary human resources. The estimated skilled workforce for battery-related operations amounts to some 126,000. More than 12,000 engineering graduates have specialised in battery-related subjects. The TU (Technical University of Berlin), the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Systems and Design Technology, and the BAM (Federal Institute of Materials Research and Testing), to name just a few outstanding scientific research centres, are available as cooperation partners for innovative projects. A total of more than 30,000 scientists are doing pioneering work in battery-related fields in Berlin.

Powering the mobility transition

The world-famous Tesla company is building its European Gigafactory in direct proximity to Berlin. The factory will be supplemented by a battery plant. Both investment and the anticipated economic impact are immense. Elon Musk’s company will invest a reported 11 billion dollars in the undertaking and receive up to 1.6 billion dollars in government subsidies to create at least 14,000 new jobs. As well as producing up to 500,000 electric cars per year for the European market, the company aims to turn the site into the world's largest battery cell production plant. That Tesla has chosen the site near Berlin for what it promises will be “the most advanced high-volume electric vehicle production plant in the world” is a huge vote of confidence in the region. “Berlin rocks,” is Musk’s verdict on the city.

Space to grow

From the heart of Berlin to the city’s outskirts, there are dozens of places for companies to settle – even for production purposes. The site of the city’s former airport Tegel TXL is being transformed into the Urban Tech Republic science and business centre. This unique initiative will see up to 1,000 large and small business with some 20,000 employees work in research, development, and production. It will be a key location for urban technologies of the future, with a focus on green energy production and storage, energy efficiency, sustainable mobility, recycling and new materials. Allocations will begin soon. Meanwhile in Berlin’s Marzahn district, the 90-hectare Cleantech Park is set to become the city’s largest industrial park and a prime production location for companies in the fields of sustainable and efficient technologies.

Key clusters in the capital

Energy technologies and transport, mobility and logistics are two important innovation clusters for Berlin’s economic development. The sectors account for a total of around 16,000 companies and some 282,000 jobs. The city is also an important centre for the healthcare industries, with science, hospitals, and businesses working closely together. The ICT, media and creative industries make up another cluster. Finally, the photonics sector develops high tech products for extremely diverse areas of application. Around 400 companies and 16,600 people work in the innovative core of this cluster. Discover your opportunities in Germany’s thriving capital!

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Contact

Berlin Partner for Business and Technology is your first point of contact when you want to start doing business in Berlin. As a public–private partnership, Berlin Partner engages in promoting innovation and the economy on behalf of the Berlin State Senate on the one hand. And on the other hand, over 280 businesses and scientific facilities in the Berlin Partner network actively promote the development of Berlin as an economic location.

Berlin Partner supports companies through every stage of their development – from project qualification, funding and location searches to personnel recruitment, innovation consultancy, the search for partners and, finally, stepping out into international markets. 

All services are free of charge.

 

Get in touch!