The Startup Association has published the German Startup Monitor 2026. 1,803 founders participated in the survey, 6.2% of them from Lower Saxony. The results clearly show where the country is well-positioned and where work still needs to be done in the ecosystem.

A Year of Records

Never before have so many startups been founded in Germany as in 2026. By the end of September, 8 billion euros of venture capital flowed into German startups, more than in the entire previous year. Projected, 12 billion euros are possible. With 39 unicorns, Germany has also reached a new high. The business climate is slightly above the previous year at 33.2 points, and 58.5% of founders expect better development.

Universities Remain the Launchpad

For Lower Saxony with its dense university and research landscape, a result is particularly relevant: 50.5% of founders received support from universities or research institutions. More than two-thirds rate this support as important or very important. Universities are most effective through access to talent (55.6%) and networking into the startup scene (51.2%). Proximity to universities is simultaneously the best-rated location factor (76.5%). With GOe FUTURE in Göttingen, Lower Saxony is also one of the ten locations of the new Startup Factories, which are intended to strengthen the transfer from science. Around 47% of founders already know the Factories.

DeepTech Becomes an Investment Magnet

58.9% of startups state that their product is based directly or indirectly on new scientific findings. 9.9% count in the narrower sense to DeepTech. Investments in DeepTech and Life-Science startups have risen to 6.4 billion euros by mid-September, after 2.9 billion euros in the entire previous year. The leap is driven above all by energy and defense. The study explicitly highlights the energy industry, robotics, and mechanical engineering, i.e., fields in which Lower Saxony is industrially and scientifically strongly represented.

Cooperation with the Economy Losing Momentum

Only 54.1% of startups work together with established companies. In 2020 it was 71.8%. At the same time, 74.2% of startups are satisfied with the Return on Investment of these cooperations. 72.3% are looking primarily for reference customers, and the B2B share of revenue reaches a record value with 76.5%. For a country with a strong Mittelstand and large industrial companies, this is a clear lever, for example via matchmaking platforms like innomatch.

Capital and Networks as Bottlenecks

When it comes to access to capital, founders see the greatest catch-up need at their location: Only 25.6% rate it positively. The biggest hurdle in fundraising is with 59.5% the search for suitable investors. Only around half of the respondents rate their own network as good. Accordingly, the demand for events is clear: 59.8% wish for formats with a clear industry focus, 54.7% events with investors. So curated formats with the appropriate circle of participants are being asked for.

The Complete Study

 The German Startup Monitor 2026 with all results is available from the Startup Association. 

Image credit: Startup Association.

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