Category: Batch #2

Artificial intelligence (AI) will play an increasingly important role in human life in the near future. To meet the growing demand for AI, conventional computer chip architectures must be reimagined, and processing speed and power consumption drastically reduced. This is where the technology developed by AiML, a spin-off of Forschungszentrum Jülich, comes into play: Computational operations are performed on a neuromorphic analog chip for edge AI applications, eliminating bottlenecks in digital logic and external memory and reducing power consumption by a factor of 100+. Target markets for the AiML chip include robotic assistance systems and autonomous driving.

Electric mobility plays a key role in reducing CO2 emissions, 20% of which are caused by the transportation sector alone worldwide. However, existing battery systems are too heavy to be used in trucks, aircraft, or construction machinery. The DLR startup Alteva has found a suitable solution to this problem: It is developing the next generation of lightweight, high-performance lithium-sulfur batteries for sustainable, electrified transportation.

Firmware is embedded software that is necessary for the operation of electronic devices and serves as the link between hardware and the operating system. Firmware must be tested on hardware, which in most cases is done manually and involves significant time and cost. The Bochum-based startup BlindSpot has developed a SaaS system that enables scalable and efficient testing of firmware on hardware. This reduces manual testing by 75%, making the hardware indirectly more secure and directly more cost-effective.

One-third of global CO2 emissions are caused by the construction and building industry. For example, the production of cement releases more CO2 than all global air traffic combined. The RWTH Aachen spin-off Co-reactive has therefore developed a process for decarbonizing operations in the cement industry. It works by storing the carbon released during cement production in the mineral olivine and reusing it as a low-emission raw material for green cement.

Rising electricity prices, uncertainty in the energy market, conflicts, and supply shortages are driving a steady increase in the demand for home energy storage systems in Germany. Galvani Energy is developing the first smart energy system based on redox flow batteries for the B2C storage market. The combination of a smart fuse box and the redox flow battery enables homeowners to store energy more efficiently, safely, and sustainably and to consume less energy than with comparable lithium storage systems.

Humobility has developed an energy-efficient and sustainable mobility/vehicle concept for a human-hybrid-powered sports vehicle designed for medium-range travel. What sets it apart is its lightweight construction, its design, and its use case as a high-tech sports vehicle for green mobility in (sub)urban areas. Electric motors propel the vehicle up to 120 km/h, while the driver controls the vehicle using bicycle pedals and generates additional energy. The vehicle combines the health benefits of cycling with the driving experience and fun factor of a sports car.

N-level has developed a highly disruptive modular battery management system with a wide range of applications and significant market potential. N-level’s technology makes it possible, for example, to eliminate the formation process in battery production—which is a major bottleneck—to use rechargeable batteries and battery storage systems until the very end of each individual cell’s lifespan, or that electric vehicles can continue to operate despite a defective battery cell, or that any two electric vehicles can be directly connected to each other for energy exchange.

Quantum computers are capable of breaking conventional encryption codes in data transmission in a short time. QCG is therefore developing a cybersecurity system based on quantum cryptography, consisting of specialized hardware and software algorithms that make data transmission secure against cyber attacks. This creates a completely new level of security for business-critical networks, especially in the area of security-relevant national infrastructure and communication. It is mathematically verifiable that even quantum computers cannot decrypt this system.

Vivalyx GmbH, a spin-off of Aachen University Hospital, has developed a method for the bloodless and gentle revitalization of donor organs. Vivalyx is dedicated to saving the lives of people with organ failure by increasing the vitality and number of donor organs. The Vivalyx solution has proven to be superior in many respects in preclinical trials.

The Bochum-based startup xemX develops customized catalysts for chemical processes, particularly to accelerate key technologies for the energy transition—such as green hydrogen production—and make them independent of expensive precious metals, which are often mined and processed under environmentally harmful conditions. xemX identifies suitable materials for electrocatalysts using AI-driven, data-driven high-throughput research on high-entropy alloys. Based on a knowledge database generated through this research, the team offers consulting services and also independently develops catalysts.