Programs and Initiatives by the DWIH NY and Partners

Startups and Entrepreneurship

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Part of the DWIH New York mission is the support of startups and the work in the field of entrepreneurship. This page will give an overview about our resources, partners, events, and opportunities in the field.

Selection of past events

STEP USA University Program – in cooperation with the GACC New York

DWIH STEP USA Logo

New York is one of the most dynamic startup ecosystems in the world and offers German startups the opportunity to internationalize their business. US venture capital firms specializing in the startup scene are still looking for good business ideas.

STEP USA Pitch Night September 2022

Against this background, an entry into the US market opens up good opportunities right now. During the trip to New York, the startups will learn what is important when entering the US market and how the startup and venture capital scene in the US works.

To specifically meet the needs of the fast-growing and dynamic scene of university startups and spin-offs, the German Center for Research and Innovation (DWIH) and the German American Chamber of Commerce, Inc. (GACC) in NY offer to bring interested founders to one of the most vibrant startup hotspots.

For four consecutive days, GACC New York and DWIH NY offer participation in customized workshops information on the following topics:

  • US Economic Update
  • Cultural Differences and the way of doing business in the US
  • Legal Requirements: Setting up your U.S. Entity, Visa Regulations, Employment & Product Liability Law
  • Pitching & Story Telling in the US
  • Sales Strategies
  • How to engage with US Investors and Building your Investor Funnel
  • Visits to incubators, meetings with angel investors and mentors

Testimonials

“My experience with the GACC’s STEP program was great. As a sport-tech founder from Germany, moving our company to the US was always a big goal but also felt like a huge project. However, the program’s hands-on experts provided me with the guidance I needed to navigate these first steps and a few months after the program we have a running US entity to run our US operations. The program was a great navigator, allowing me to be efficient and providing trusted sources of information for this first step towards my company’s US market entry. I highly recommend it to any founder looking to make the move to the US market.” – Jaan Brunken, Wingfield (2022 cohorte)

“We strongly believe in the startup mentality and philosophy of the U.S. We wanted to learn from the best and to be open to new ideas, welcoming inspiration, especially from experts in different fields. The STEP USA program is the perfect format to get authentic knowledge from the source, tailored to our needs as a young German startup, as well as building up a network.” – Perosol (2021 cohorte)

“We saw the great and unique chance to grow together with peers through an experienced group of speakers and startup experts, providing customized information and insights for a future step into the U.S. market. […] The overall program was valuable, and each session was thoughtfully chosen by the organizers, especially the exercises and the Q&A sessions amongst peers provided valuable insights during the 4-day course.” – Spindiag (2021 cohorte)

Selected awards and success stories

Press

2023 edition

The program will take place December 4 – 6, 2023, more information on the dedicated event page.

2022 edition

The program (event page – only in German) took place in New York in September 2022 with

2021 edition

The program took place virtually in November 2021, see event page.

Participating companies:

  • apartmen – AI home stylist
  • Boston Buckwheat – food based on roasted buckwheat
  • Klangio – transcribing songs to sheet music notation
  • Labmaite – lab automation using AI
  • neuro11 – mental strength training for elite athletes
  • opto biolabs – illumination devices for optogenetic research
  • perosol – printed solar cells
  • Phaseform – refractive adaptive optics components
  • Reasonance – enabling machine learning and data intensive applications
  • Sensawtious – battery free sensors for the Smart Home
  • Spindiag GmbH – sustainable platform for infection control